A new co-branded version of the "Easy Card," currently being used on the MRT, on buses and in parking lots in Taipei, will enable users to also pay for purchases at more than 600 stores.
The Taipei Smart Card Corporation has joined forces with four local
banks, Taishin Bank, Chinatrust Commercial Bank, Taipei Fubon Bank and
PHOTO: LIN CHENG-KUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Cathay United Bank, to issue the co-branded Easy Card, which can be used
not only to pay for transportation or parking, but also as a credit card.
It can also function as a debit card, which allows card holders to do
small-amount shopping with a NT$500 (US$15) cash purchase limit.
"We continue to explore adding more functions to the card. Hopefully all card holders will soon be able to travel around the country conveniently using just their Easy Card," Taipei Smart Card Corporation chairman Ou Chin-der (歐晉德) said yesterday at the Zhongxiao-Dunhua MRT Station, where the new card was introduced.
Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who described the Easy Card as one of his administration's most successful municipal developments, said that it was already being used as an ID card for municipal elementary school and junior high school students.
"As the services offered with the Easy Card continue to expand, we want the card to not only benefit Taipei residents, but all the people in the country," he said.
The co-branded Easy Card, which incorporates the Visa Wave payment system, enables users to shop at stores including Blockbusters, Taipei 101 Mall's food court and Costco.
The card also has an "autoload" function, which will automatically transfer NT$500 from the user's credit card account to the easy card account once the Easy Card's balance falls below NT$100.
The company and the banks are negotiating with other convenience stores and gas stations to accept the card by October. They have also been working with taxi associations in Taipei and plan to expand the number of taxis which accept the cards from 300 to 4,000 by the end of the year.
The four banks also offer different discounts with the use of the co-branded card, such as free parking or discounts ranging from 10 to 20 percent on other services.
The Easy Card, launched on June 12, 2002, is the sixth-largest circulated card of its kind in the world, with its circulation reaching 7 million this year, the corporation said.
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