Dubai: Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD), one of the leading banks in the United Arab Emirates, announced that it has signed an exclusive multi-year strategic partnership agreement for credit and debit cards with global leader in digital payments, Visa. This agreement aims to further accelerate digital payments in the UAE, offering innovative and customer-centric solutions to CBD cardholders across all segments.

The new partnership agreement was signed by Khaled Al Hammadi, General Manager, Personal Banking Group at CBD and Salima Gutieva, Visa’s VP and Country Manager for UAE, in the presence of Dr. Bernd van Linder, Chief Executive Officer, Commercial Bank of Dubai, and Andrew Torre, Visa’s Regional President for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa. 

As part of this partnership, CBD and Visa are also partnering to establish a ‘Centre of Excellence’ powered by Visa Consulting and Analytics (VCA), dedicated to accelerating and simplifying customer’s payment experiences. By leveraging core data assets and deriving insights, VCA will formulate actionable recommendations that aim to address business challenges and offer personalised solutions to customers. This collaborative approach will support CBD’s goals of market expansion, product design, customer acquisition, and engagement improvement, focusing on areas such as encouraging card usage through engaging and rewarding gamification, positioning CBD Visa cards as the top choice in digital wallets, enhancing cross-border transactions and payment speed, and expanding our footprint through strategic digital merchant collaborations.

Moreover, CBD and Visa are redefining the marketing landscape for the CBD card business through initiatives such as leveraging advanced technology to enhance digital customer onboarding experiences, sponsoring high-profile events like the Olympics, launching the Visa Instalment Solution in the UAE to introduce flexible payment options for our customers directly through Point-of-Sale (POS) machines, and offering comprehensive local and international benefits, focusing on the complete lifecycle of new and existing CBD Visa cardholders.

Dr. Bernd van Linder, Chief Executive Officer, Commercial Bank of Dubai, said, “We are excited to build on our partnership with Visa as we continue our mission in providing innovative and customer-centric payment solutions. The financial sector landscape is changing dramatically with technological disruption, emergence of new players, as well as constantly evolving customer expectations. Our collaboration with Visa will help us in developing new business models and providing more personalised customer offerings. At CBD, we are committed to playing a leading role in the digitisation of the financial payments sector and introducing innovative financial solutions that meet our customers’ evolving needs and deliver seamless banking experiences.”

Khaled Al Hammadi, General Manager, Personal Banking Group at CBD, further added, “We are proud of this extended and strategic partnership with Visa. With Visa's global expertise and CBD’s dedication to meeting the needs of our customers, we aim to provide a more seamless payment solution, delivering a variety of competitive and innovative features, products, and offers that are data-driven and are based on customer feedback. This includes recognising and rewarding our customers, enhancing their banking experience, and delivering tangible benefits.”

Salima Gutieva, Visa's VP and Country Manager for UAE, said, "We are delighted to expand our partnership with CBD with this exclusive multi-year partnership for their credit and debit portfolio.  We will continue to work together to develop attractive products that deliver seamless, secure and rewarding experiences to the bank’s customers. CBD will be able to leverage Visa's industry-leading data and analytic capabilities to further drive innovation with personalized experiences for Visa cardholders. We also look forward to bringing value to local retailers and contribute to the UAE government's efforts to grow the digital economy.”

About Commercial Bank of Dubai:

Commercial Bank of Dubai was established in 1969 and is registered as a Public Shareholding Company (PSC). The Bank is listed on the Dubai Financial Market and is mostly owned by UAE Nationals including the Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD). Over the years, Commercial Bank of Dubai has built itself into a progressive and modern Banking institution, endowed with a strong financial structure and strong management, as well as a loyal and ever-increasing customer and correspondent base. Today CBD is one of the leading banks in the United Arab Emirates and offers its customers a full range of retail and commercial banking products and services. 

For additional information, contact CBD’s PR and Media team at PRandMedia@cbd.ae

About Visa

Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at About Visa, Visa CEMEA Blog and @VisaCEMEA.