Azerbaijan’s first instalment credit card finds market

Azerbaijans ASB bank said it has sold 5,000 of its interest-free instalment credit card - the Extra Card - since it was launched two months ago. The co-branded ASB-MasterCard card allows users to pay for good and services with customised and interest-free instalments over a year, in Azerbaijan and abroad.Eldair Jabrailov head of plastic cards at ASB told Cards International that the product targets the Azerbaijani middle class. If people want to buy goods that are a little bit expensive, such as laptops or TVs, they may not be able to afford to pay the whole amount the at the end of the month, as happens with other credit cards, he said. But with Extra Card, they can spread the payments over a year, and they can afford to buy those goods more easily. Jabrailov said cardholders setting up instalments also earn rewards, redeemable in 90 partner merchants, designed to spurring the use of cards in the country.Azerbaijan is progressively moving towards cashless payment methods. In April 2012, MasterCard said it was introducing its contactless payment technology PayPass in the country. Earlier this year Azerbaijani authorities also announced plans to improve the countrys cards and payments infrastructure to tackle corruption an increase transparency in payments.