From 2017 onwards, you can shop with your NOL card

The Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai (RTA) today announced its partnership with Network International, the leading payment solutions provider in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), to enable retail payments through NOL cards at select merchant outlets in Dubai, leveraging the Mercury domestic scheme platform.    

For NOL card users in Dubai this would mean, starting next year, they would be able to use their cards to make quick and easy payments for purchases at several retail outlets that accept Mercury cards at POS terminals, as well as for transit. The move complements RTA’s strategic objective of offering greater convenience to public transport users in the emirate, in line with Dubai’s Smart City initiative. 

Visitors to GITEX Technology Week, being held from October 16 - 20, 2016 can test the new initiative by using their NOL cards to complete a simple tap-and-pay transaction for purchases made at the Dubai World Trade Centre’s ZOOM metro outlet. 

Abdulla Al Madani, CEO of RTA’s Corporate Technology Support Services Sector expressed his delight in signing this agreement with strategic partner Network International, in particular since RTA’s NOL card has become an indispensable tool to all public transport users in Dubai.

“Enabling public from all social segments to use NOL cards to meet their retail payments’ needs is aligned with RTA’s strategic goal No. 3, which is ‘People Happiness.’ RTA has always sought the best methods to make people in the UAE, including citizens, residents, tourists and visitors, happy by providing them with safer, sophisticated, secure and faster solutions that enhance and make their lives happy, more easy and comfortable. To meet this goal, RTA has collaborated with internationally reputed organisations, hence our partnership with Network International is strategic due to the importance of this service,” said Al Madani.  

“The roll-out of this solution indisputably supports Dubai’s ambition to be the smartest city in the world in three years by harnessing the latest technologies and most advanced methods to realise this objective. This initiative also incorporates excellence and innovation, which are vital factors to fully accomplish the smart city vision,” he added.   

 Commenting on the announcement, Bhairav Trivedi, Group CEO of Network International, said: “Network International is pleased to extend our partnership with RTA for another milestone project that supports the Smart City vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai and could potentially benefit thousands of public transport users in Dubai every day. The success of transit cards displacing cash for retail payments has been evident around the world, including in cities like London and Hong Kong where the Oyster and Octopus cards are ubiquitous. We are confident that the same can be replicated in Dubai and look forward to continue to support this initiative.”   

Denzil Lawson, Head of Mercury, added: “Customers testing the new initiative first-hand at the ZOOM store during GITEX can experience the benefits of using their NOL cards to make purchases. This initiative aims to make people’s lives simpler by removing the need to carry cash for day to day purchases, particularly for micropayments. Whether buying groceries after a metro ride or a coffee on the way to work, the NOL card provides a convenient, secure and easy way to pay.”    

Commenting on the partnership, His Excellency Saif Humaid Al Falasi, Group CEO of ENOC, said: “The UAE government’s strategy to create smart cities was founded to help secure a better future for its people—from empowered residents to engaged and happy consumers. Therefore, the implementation of intelligent solutions is crucial. Incorporating ZOOM payments into RTA’s NOL cards ensures fast, easy and convenient payment methods across our outlets and these are values that we strive to embody in all our operations and services. We look forward to our partnership with the RTA and Network International, and hope that this collaboration serves as an example for future cooperation.”