Kyivstar, Ukrainian business unit of VimpelCom with a total customer base of over 25 million subscribers, has selected Gemalto's UpTeq Multi-tenant SIM embedded software to support the country’s first ever contactless payment via a mobile phone. Gemalto, the world leader in digital security, notes that the Alfa Bank’s pilot paves the way for a full commercial launch of NFC mobile payments across Ukraine.
“Kyivstar is committed to delivering an outstanding mobile payment experience,” said Alexey Kireev, Head of New Business Department at Kyivstar. “Our goal is to continue developing mobile finance products at Kyivstar extensively in 2014. We are glad to be working with one of the world’s most trusted partners for NFC.”
“NFC technology virtually transforms a smartphone into a fully functional ‘mobile purse‘, which offers Alfa-Bank customers a trendy, ubiquitous payment method,” noted Piotr Kaczmarek, Director of Retail Business, Alfa-Bank (Ukraine). « And you may use it anywhere you come across a contactless payment terminal.“
![Philippe Cambriel, EVP Secure Transactions Business Unit Gemalto [Credit:Gemalto]](http://www.gemalto.com/companyinfo/about/images/cambriel.png "Philippe Cambriel, EVP Secure Transactions Business Unit Gemalto [Credit:Gemalto]")
“By leveraging Gemalto’s NFC technology, Kyivstar and Alfa Bank are pioneering a revolution in the way Ukrainians will pay for goods and services in the years ahead,” added Philippe Cambriel, Gemalto President for Europe, Mediterranean and CIS. “With the boom in contactless equipment at the point of sale in the country, this is the perfect timing for mobile payment introduction.
