National Bank of Egypt and Mastercard launch Touch Card for visually impaired

By Gloria Methri

The National Bank of Egypt (NBE), in collaboration with Mastercard, has introduced the Touch Card to provide more options for visually impaired customers.

Carefully designed to integrate seamlessly with existing point-of-sale terminals and ATMs, ensuring wide accessibility, the Touch Card features clearly identifiable notches on the side: debit cards have a round notch and prepaid cards have a triangular notch, allowing users to easily identify and distinguish their cards.

This unique card is Egypt’s first innovative payment solution for the visually impaired and partially sighted. It builds on the long-standing partnership between NBE and Mastercard and the shared vision of both parties to offer innovative financial solutions tailored to these groups and to advance financial inclusion.

“We are incredibly proud of this achievement and are confident that the Touch Card will make a lasting difference in the lives of people with visual impairments in Egypt, enabling them to manage their finances more easily and confidently. This initiative is in line with Mastercard’s global vision of a world where everyone has the tools and resources they need to succeed in the digital age,” said Adam Jones, Division President, Western Arabia, Mastercard.

To improve access to financial services, the National Bank of Egypt has hired 100 visually impaired employees and trained 400 employees in sign language in 230 branches. It has also introduced Braille banking models in 60 branches, operates 1,288 ATMs specially designed for visually impaired users, 34 ATMs for people with reduced mobility and 28 mobile ATMs with special elevators, and offers 60 financing programs for people with disabilities under the “Hemma” program.

Karim Soos, Retail Chief Executive Officer of the National Bank of Egypt, stated that this initiative is in line with NBE’s growing recognition of the importance of financial inclusion for people with disabilities. The Touch Card will empower these people to confidently manage their finances and fully participate in the digital economy.