The Evolution Of Smartcard And EMV Migration In Bahrain

Abstract

Within the improvement of Information Technology era, many business enterprises, academia institutions and banks in various regions around the world are enthusiastic and looking into the future by producing an all-in-one smart card with Europay, MasterCard and Visa (EMV) protocols for their employees, students or customers. This smart card can be used in different fields such as ID card, debit/credit card, transportations, healthcare, communication networks, loyalty, etc., with high level of security. This paper gives the reader an overview of the evolution of smart card and the important benefits derived over the existing traditional magnetic stripe card. The paper aims to study the following five key elements: Importance of EMV, EMV Implementation in Bahrain, Obstacles and Constraints, Customer Satisfaction, and EMV Future in Bahrain. The results of the study reveals that Bahrain is on its approach towards the EMV migration and will definitely be ready for rollout in the coming few years. It was also demonstrated that even though adopting EMV smart card technology may cost the organization a lot, it would be on the other hand very beneficial to them in many different aspects. Furthermore, it was provided that moving toward smart card in general will differentiate Bahrain and will put her among the leader. This paper can be used as a basis for further researches to improve specific aspects of the evolution of smart card and EMV Migration in the Kingdom of Bahrain or elsewhere. It will also provide a useful input for other local banks and/or organizations that have not proceed towards smart card adaptation yet.