Payments Landscape in Lebanon: Opportunities and Risks to 2022

Payments Landscape in Lebanon: Opportunities and Risks to 2022

Summary

The "Payments Landscape in Lebanon: Opportunities and Risks to 2022", report provides detailed analysis of market trends in Lebanon's cards and payments industry. It provides values and volumes for a number of key performance indicators in the industry, including cards and cheques during the review-period (2014-18e).

The report also analyzes various payment card markets operating in the industry, and provides detailed information on the number of cards in circulation, transaction values and volumes during the review-period and over the forecast-period (2018-22f). It also offers information on the country's competitive landscape, including the market shares of issuers and schemes.

The report brings together the author's research, modeling, and analysis expertise to allow banks and card issuers to identify segment dynamics and competitive advantages. The report also covers details of regulatory policy and recent changes in the regulatory structure.

This report provides top-level market analysis, information and insights into Lebanon's cards and payments industry, including:

• Current and forecast values for each market in Lebanon's cards and payments industry, including debit, credit and charge cards.


• Detailed insights into payment instruments including cheques and cards. It also, includes an overview of the country's key alternative payment instruments.


• E-commerce market analysis.


• Analysis of various market drivers and regulations governing Lebanon's cards and payments industry.


• Detailed analysis of strategies adopted by banks and other institutions to market debit, credit and charge cards.

Scope

• The emergence of contactless technology will further boost electronic payments, primarily for low-value transactions. All major banks such as Bank Audi, Bank of Beirut, and BLOM Bank now offer contactless cards. In addition, major scheme providers Visa and Mastercard offer their respective payWave and PayPass contactless payment technologies in Lebanon. Companies are also introducing biometric features on payment cards for a secure and convenient payment experience. In April 2018 areeba, a Lebanese financial technology company, partnered with Visa, Gemalto (a digital security company), and Zwipe (a biometric technology company) to introduce contactless biometric payment cards, which is now in pilot phase.


• To strengthen consumer confidence in card-based payments by mitigating card fraud, Banque du Liban (Lebanon’s central bank), issued a circular in March 2018 prohibiting the double-swiping of payment cards at POS terminals. The restriction is intended to prevent unauthorized storage of card holders’ information. The central bank has also directed banks, financial institutions, and companies to issue EMV-compliant chip-and-PIN payment cards by June 30, 2019.


• Alternative payments are gradually gaining prominence in Lebanon, with banks and telecom companies launching services. The latest is the launch of BLOM Pay by BLOM Bank in August 2017, which enables users with a Visa- and Mastercard-branded debit or credit card issued by BLOM Bank to make contactless payments using an Android phone. Similarly, Byblos Pay - a mobile payment app - was launched by Byblos Bank in collaboration with Visa, CSC Bank, and mobile app development lab FOO, in November 2016. The app enable users to make contactless payments using their stored Byblos Bank Visa credit card at merchant terminals.

Reasons to buy

• Make strategic business decisions, using top-level historic and forecast market data, related to Lebanon's cards and payments industry and each market within it.


• Understand the key market trends and growth opportunities in Lebanon's cards and payments industry.


• Assess the competitive dynamics in Lebanon's cards and payments industry.


• Gain insights into marketing strategies used for various card types in Lebanon.


• Gain insights into key regulations governing Lebanon's cards and payments industry.