Global mobile-payment services provider Mobibucks Pvt. Ltd. has inked a strategic-partnership deal with Emirates Net Systems LLC, an official from the Abu Dhabi-based information-technology provider tells PaymentsSource.
Emirates Net will support U.S.-based Mobibucks' growth in the United Arab Emirates and North Africa, according to the official. Mobibucks entered the payments market a little more than a year ago.
Mobibucks offers a stored-value-based mobile-payment service for making purchases using a mobile-phone number.
When using Mobibucks' service, customers first must open a prepaid account by sending a text message to a predefined Mobibucks number. The user's mobile number then becomes his identification number, and Mobibucks sends him a four-digit PIN to use for authorizing transactions.
Consumers then may use their phone and PIN to make secure payments at locations such as cafes, gas stations, grocery stores, movie theaters and convenience stores by entering their mobile phone number and PIN on a Mobibucks keypad at checkout.
Customers may add funds either by going online and transferring funds from their bank accounts or by paying cash at select Mobibucks merchants.
Without disclosing specifically what the two companies will work on together, the official says that Emirates Net partnered with Mobibucks for its visionary approach to mobile commerce. "The new economy demands new payment tools, and Mobibucks is such a tool," he says. "We look forward to being Mobibucks' partner in the region."
