Emirates NBD, the region's biggest bank by assets, has teamed up with Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) to offer Metro commuters a "two-in-one" transport credit card.
The "combi-card", which will be launched in the second quarter of next year, combines a credit or debit card with the Metro's Nol Card.
The Nol Card is automatically topped up by either the credit or debit side of the card when it falls to a certain value, giving added value to commuters.
"From a customer's point of view, we are excited in terms of the positioning of the product," says R Sivaram, the head of cards business at Emirates NBD.
"The Metro is popular in the UAE. As it grows in terms of the RTA's expansion of its lines, clearly it will add a lot of convenience to people's lives. They won't have to carry change anymore and it removes the need to carry multiple cards. It is a positive step and should be accepted well [by commuters]."
Emirates NBD was awarded the tender for the combi-card, the first of its kind in the Middle East, last Monday.
Dubai is not the first city in the world to introduce a combined credit/debit contactless smart-card that can be used on a transport system.
In 2006, Barclaycard put itself ahead of the pack when it launched a combined credit card and a cashless transport card. Called OnePulse, it incorporates the Oyster card technology that is used on London's public transport system.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation followed in May 2008, when it launched its first co-branded two-in-one credit card with Citibank.
Two months later, Hong Kong joined the club with its Octopus Citibank Credit Card, which offers credit and contactless smart-card payment functions at thousands of retail and transport locations across the city.
Users will be able to use Dubai's combi-card on the Metro, for water taxis, parking meters and on buses.
The card also offers a range of benefits that customers normally receive with their credit cards, such as free travel insurance and other rewards.
"We will be offering additional benefits to users, but we have yet to define the details of the product," says Mr Sivaram.
For more information, contact Emirates NBD on 600 54 0000.
fglover@thenational.ae
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein
By Fiona Sampson
Profile
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Turkish Ladies
Various artists, Sony Music Turkey
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
Results
International 4, United States 1
Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods (US) beat Marc Leishman and Joaquin Niemann (International) 4 and 3.
Adam Hadwin and Sungjae Im (International) beat Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay (US) 2 up.
Adam Scott and Byeong Hun An (International) beat Bryson DeChambeau and Tony Finau (US) 2 and 1.
Hideki Matsuyama and C.T. Pan (International) beat Webb Simpson and Patrick Reed (US) 1 up.
Abraham Ancer and Louis Oosthuizen (International) beat Dustin Johnson and Gary Woodland (US) 4 and 3.
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