Network International, the chief enabler of digital commerce over the Middle East & Africa (MEA) today revealed that Careem joins its increasing list of issuer processing clients.

The five-year agreement will see Network International process prepaid cards on behalf of Careem in five countries: United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Pakistan. The project is part of Careems digital payments initiative enabling its captains to access their daily trip earnings in real-time via a Visa card.

The project serves many advantages to Careem, its customers and captains, in addition to supporting the drive towards a cashless economy in the five countries. Most significantly, it will facilitate Careems captains to directly access the money they earn for both cash and non-cash transactions, instead of waiting days for the next payment cycle.

Network Internationals collaboration with Careem comes at a crucial time, as consumers frequently shift to contactless payments, in the wake of safety guidelines and social distancing restrictions during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Samer Soliman, Managing Director, the Middle East at Network International said, We are thrilled to cooperate with Careem on this significant project that not only discusses the urgent need for access to cash amongst the underbanked but will also give the benefits of heightened safety, security, comfort and flexibility via cashless transactions to all parties. Empowering digital payments is a responsibility we share with Careem, and we look forward to promoting collaborations that stimulate the transition from cash to digital payments.

Mudassir Sheikha, CEO and Co-Founder of Careemsaid, This alliance with Network International is an important milestone in Careems journey to enhance the regions everyday Super App. Frictionless digital payments are an integral part of our helping simplify the daily lives of both our clients and captains. We care strongly about financial addition and so were excited to be working with an industry leader to put powerful FinTech in the hands of millions of people across our region.