Kyrgyzstan’s national payment system Elkart and Mastercard have signed a memorandum of cooperation to create a joint card that will allow citizens to pay abroad from their Elkart account.
On November 13, CJSC Interbank Processing Center (operator of Elkart) and Mastercard signed a memorandum to develop digital payments, fintech, and cybersecurity. The document was signed by Sanzhar Zhamalov, General Manager of Mastercard in Kyrgyzstan and Central Asian countries, and Altymysh Turatbekov, Chairman of the Board of IPC.
The first project will be the “Elkart–Mastercard” digital co-badged card. It will combine the two payment systems: operating via Elkart’s infrastructure in Kyrgyzstan and through Mastercard’s network of over 200 million merchant locations abroad. The integration will cover more than 3.2 million cards issued by the country’s commercial banks. Cardholders will be able to link their cards to Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Garmin Pay, with funds debited from their existing Elkart account. The cards can be used to pay at international stores, online platforms, book hotels, and buy airline tickets.