Citigroup Inc. and MasterCard Inc. have begun issuing a contactless credit card that can be used for fare in Moscow's Metro subway system.
The card has two functions, Citi and MasterCard said. Riders can use it to gain entry to the subway system at the turnstile; the cost of these rides is aggregated monthly and charged to a credit account linked to the card. The card also can be used to make purchases at retail stores and online.
"The project to integrate payment for Metro travel with bank cards was primarily initiated … as a way to help save time," Dmitriy Gaev, who heads the subway system, said last week in a Citi press release. "Now they have a choice of how and when to pay for travel."
Citi has been involved for some time with payment systems at transit agencies around the world, including Singapore, Hong Kong, New Delhi, New York, and Washington.
