InterSwitch, Nigeria’s premier payment transactions switching company has launched the first African branded MasterCard MChip4 payment card brand into the vibrant e-payment market in Nigeria . This is in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) directive which mandates all banks to convert all existing magnetic stripe cards to a more secure Chip and PIN platform by the end of 2009. The new product, Verve is accepted and being used across all available payment channels in Nigeria . Verve Cardholders can carry out payment transactions on over 11, 000 Point of Sale (PoS) terminals, 7, 300 Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), 200 Web merchants sites, and on 50, 000 mobile phones.

Mitchell Elegbe, chief executive officer (CEO) of InterSwitch, who spoke to newsmen at the verve media parley, noted that the CBNs directive is in the best interest of banks, merchants and cardholder as it is in tandem with global best practices.

This, he said, is because existing magnetic stripe cards have limited storage capabilities, offer little flexibility for business development and are easy to duplicate. He disclosed that the company has launched a campaign tagged “Get More Out of Life” to educate and enlighten Nigerians about the features of the verve card brand.


Elegbe explained that the Verve Chip and PIN card is specially designed by Nigerians for the world. Commenting on InterSwitch contribution to the development of the Nigerian e-payment space, Elegbe said: “Today, there are over 7, 300 ATMs on our network, over 12, 000 PoS terminals as at the last day of January, we have all the 24 banks in Nigeria connected to the switch while 19 state governments rely on the platform for the collection of internally generated revenue. There are over 28 million InterSwitch enabled cards active on the network as at today”.

He pointed out that despite the global switch to Chip and PIN cards the company and its partner banks in 2003 opted for the simple magnetic stripe technology because of its adaptability and cost at that point in time.

“Therefore, the next level for us is to begin to replace the 26 million cards out there with this new technology that is
more secure and customer friendly. After an extensive research and design that spans over two and the half years, we have come up a card that delivers more security features, more channels, more reward, more value to cardholders, banks and merchants”, he added. In terms of security, the Interswitch MD boasted that the company’s Chip and PIN smart card is one of the smartest cards around. “We have woven a number of security features and fraud management solutions incorporated into it. These fraud initiatives were developed to address various types of fraud which have been observed in the last couple of years.”

They include: Fraud Aware (this is the Cardholder Awareness initiative – aimed at educating cardholders about the importance of safeguarding their PINs), Fraud Insure – card fraud Insurance, Money Guard – SMS alert and response system.Also, Data Guard – this ensures that international standards such as PCI DSS standards, ISO 27001, Identity Guard – a token for two-factor authentication, Chip Authentication Program (CAP), Fraud Watch – a portal and email for fraud reporting.

Author of this article: Ben Uzor Jr