April 07, 2010
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News: Bank Islam To Introduce Two New Cards
As many credit card companies in the U.S. are downsizing and preparing to make yet more cuts to customer accounts, other nations are enjoying market growth. The Bank of Islam Malaysia Bhd is preparing to expand its credit card market by launching two new co-branded cards. The bank's Assistant General Manager of its card division, Muhammad Izmir Chan Abdullah announced that the company is preparing to close the two deals with two separate companies for co-branded credit cards. One of the companies is said to be a telecommunications company. Abdullah said that both the companies are strong candidates and the bank expects to sign the deals within the next month or two.
According to Abdullah, the companies under consideration for the co-branded credit cards have "huge customer bases." The bank expects it will be able to market the cards as having a great deal of value and benefit. The Bank of Islam conducts over 21 million credit card transactions per month. In 2007, the bank reported its highest profits in the history of the company after suffering its first loss in 2005. Its card customer base currently totals nearly 500,000 with a goal of reaching a million within the next year.
Developed through the combination of three Shariah technology concepts, Bank Islam's Credit Card Chip Based (Smart Chip) is considered cutting edge technology and the first of its kind in the world. The bank was the first in Malaysia to introduce the third generation technology. Card services offer a number of exclusive benefits which in addition to its nationwide retail acceptance includes: automatic teller machine (ATM) and Bank Islam branch cash withdrawals, payment at any bank facility or ATM, transfer balances, emergency cash advance and card replacement when traveling overseas, and 24 hour customer service. The growing tourist market has also become one of Malaysia's focused target which in part motivated the country to increase its number of ATM machines and card benefits.