Issued by SEB Latvia on behalf of the Jelgava county government, the new Optelio is a private label payment solution compliant with the EMV standard for seamless addition of new applications over time.
Initially, the multi-application card will be used only for faster boarding and cash-free travel on local buses, while it will include contactless payment and be extended to all of Jelgava’s residents.
Gemalto secure transactions senior vice president Jean-Paul Ternisien said that the launch of contactless technology will enable the company to acquire new customers and establish the principle of paying for goods and services using a card.
"It will allow the scheme to develop and grow in any other city, as well as providing the basis for migration to a mobile phone based system in the future," Ternisien added.
Serving 400,000 corporate customers and institutions and 5 million private customers, SEB is a North European financial services group which offers a number of financial services.
In 2012, Gemalto had revenues of €2.2bn and more than 10,000 staff operating out of 83 offices and 13 Research & Development centers, located in 43 nations.
