PSPP Holdings Inc. of Los Angeles said Thursday that its card processing unit, eSafe Cards Inc., has begun testing the Africard Prepaid Visa payroll card issued by Banque du Burkina Internationale of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
The card is reloadable at branches of the bank and at certain Western Union Co. locations, PSPP said. It is one of the first Visa-branded cards in western Africa to store funds denominated in the CFA franc, a currency used in several African countries, the company said.
Last month PSPP said it had hired Serge Doh, a former track and field champion from the Ivory Coast, to develop business in French-speaking countries in Africa and Europe. In a press release, Larry Wilcox, PSPP's chairman, said Mr. Doh's "relationships with the government diplomats and other dignitaries will … accelerate our sensitive entry into emerging markets."
