The e-payment gateway, ITA sources said, would be operational in line with Oman’s forthcoming e-government gateway called the UBAR portal. It will support multiple acquiring banks. To facilitate this mechanism, ITA yesterday signed agreements with MasterCard Worldwide and BankMuscat to launch the ‘national e-payment gateway’ to provide an e-governance infrastructure and full e-commerce facilities that allow secure online payments.
Mohammed Nasser Al Khusaibi, chairman, ITA, and secretary-general at the Ministry of National Economy; AbdulRazak Ali Issa, chief executive, BankMuscat; and Shaun K. Rashid, senior business leader, MasterCard signed the agreements here.
This initiative is part of the continuous efforts taken by the ITA to build the e-governance infrastructure of the Sultanate. During an extensive RFP process last year, ITA invited payment gateway providers to tender for the provision of e-payments for government services.
BankMuscat will be the first acquiring bank to support these ITA payments. The goal of the e-payment gateway project is to provide a mechanism to handle the online payment for goods and services offered by the government, which subsequently, will be made available to commercial entities in Oman.
“We are planning to launch the ‘national e-payment gateway’ as early as possible. If everything goes well, the project will take off within three months from now,” Mohammed Nasser Al Khusaibi told the Times of Oman.
The state-of-the-art e-payment solution will support the delivery of e-services of the public sector and will also assist the private sector’s moves into e-commerce. The e-payment gateway will enable efficient electronic transactions in Oman, and simplify the processing of payment transactions for electronic services within the country. The government, in its e-governance strategy, has identified electronic payments, particularly internet-enabled payments, as a critical shared service within the e-governance architecture.
E-payment gateway will increase the adoption of e-services. Explaining the significance of this development, Mohammed Nasser Al Khusaibi said: “The e-payment gateway is a key enabler to the successful delivery of public sector services online and once operational will increase the adoption of e-services due to its efficiency and ease-of-use.”
“The presence of such a robust and secure e-payment gateway will enable e-government shared services to be paid for electronically using major local and international credit and debit cards, and in future, other electronic payment instruments. This agreement is another significant milestone in the implementation of our e-Oman strategy.”
Dr Salim Sultan Al Ruzaiqi, CEO, ITA, said: “We are excited to cooperate with MasterCard and BankMuscat in developing an e-government infrastructure offering e-commerce facilities for merchants who will have the choice of acquirer. MasterCard Payment Gateway Service provides us with a platform that will provide support for all acquirers equally. The service offered by MasterCard on the operational activities related to MiGS will support our e-Commerce development strategy. We are confident that this cooperation will be very successful”
It’s cost effective and complete payment solution for ministries and merchants.
The national e-payment gateway platform will use the MasterCard Gateway Service (MiGS) provided by MasterCard. MiGS is a turnkey payment solution for merchants and organisations that require a secure and more efficient way to process payments from customers across all acceptance channels. MasterCard, in collaboration with BankMuscat — the nation’s leading bank, will be able to offer full technical and financial capability for the e-commerce-processing platform. However, MiGS is acquirer independent and ITA and MasterCard will support other Omani acquirers on request.
MiGS is a turnkey payment solution for large and small merchants and organisations alike that require a secure and more efficient way to process payments from customers across all acceptance channels and for all global credit and charge cards. The MiGS platform, now processing over 3.5 million online transactions a month, will enable the ITA to manage their merchant base and link the merchants to their chosen Omani acquirer.
Patrick Hayes, vice-president, product delivery, South Asia, Middle East and North Africa, MasterCard Worldwide, said: “Our vast experience in internet and non-internet billing processes and our ability to provide a unique and strategic platform for credit card payment processes internationally truly positions MasterCard as a leader in advancing global commerce. We are delighted to be awarded the Information Technology Authority contract in cooperation with BankMuscat.
“As a turnkey internet payment gateway, MiGS is a cost-effective and complete payment solution that enables banks to provide merchants with secure online payments. MasterCard is committed to creating more advanced methods of payment, such as the MiGS offering, that fuel economic connections and drive real business value for its customers, merchants and consumers across the diverse region.”
AbdulRazak Ali Issa, chief executive, BankMuscat, said: “BankMuscat is proud to be the acquiring bank on the national e-payment gateway. The bank has always striven to provide state-of-the-art technology products and services to its customers. Participating in the national e-payment gateway initiative is a part of the bank’s continuing endeavour to work closely with government agencies for improving the financial infrastructure in the country. We congratulate ITA on this achievement and look forward to partnering them on many more such path-breaking initiatives in the future.”
Dr Salim Sultan Al Ruzaiqi added: “We are glad to see that the commercial banks in Oman are keen to support the e-government development. The cooperation with BankMuscat in this initiative indicates the level of their continued commitment towards assisting the government in developing the countries infrastructure, and we would like to see other commercial banks to be part of this initiative”
The e-payment gateway will allow merchants based in Oman to sell their products and services on the internet to customers worldwide. While customers in Oman could hitherto purchase products and services from any part of the world on the Internet, there was no facility available that would allow merchants based in Oman to sell their products and services to customers across the world via cyberspace.
Quelle/Source: Times of Oman, 11.04.2007
