Abu Dhabi's FAB and Magnati team up with RAK government to develop new digital platform

RAK Pay to boost the number of payment services available to customers

First Abu Dhabi Bank and Magnati are in partnership with the Ras Al Khaimah government to develop a new digital payment platform. Photo: Magnati

First Abu Dhabi Bank, the UAE’s largest lender by assets, and its payments business unit Magnati are teaming up with the Ras Al Khaimah government to develop RAK Pay, a new digital payment platform to improve government services and streamline revenue collection from customers.

RAK Pay will broaden the number of payment channels for users by accepting major card schemes, Magnati said in a statement on Monday.

FAB and Magnati will also provide the RAK government with its own co-branded prepaid cards for issuing to users for all government service payments — an initiative that aims to promote cashless payments and encourage unbanked customers to use RAK Pay instead of cash.

“Streamlining revenue collection empowers the government to focus on their core business and improving their services while allowing for better planning and forecasting of revenues,” the statement said.

The use of digital platforms for payments and other services has increased since the outbreak of the coronavirus. Governments across the globe are focusing on boosting services to develop a digital economy.

Globally, digital payments are expected to grow to $8.26 trillion by 2024, from $4.4tn in 2020, according to Statista.

“Magnati is excited to partner with the RAK government to introduce the next era of smart government services that prioritise speed, convenience and security for users,” Ramana Kumar, chief executive of Magnati, said.

The partnership “is in line with the strategic goals of the government, and the Department of Finance’s continuous efforts to enhance the emirate’s financial sustainability, while strengthening corporate governance of public revenue management and increasing the economic competitiveness of the digital economy”, said Yousuf Ali Mohammed, director general of the Department of Finance.

FAB has a 40 per cent stake in Magnati. The lender earlier this year signed an agreement to sell a 60 per cent stake in Magnati to New York-listed Brookfield Business Partners, valuing the company at $1.15 billion.