Smart-cards as bank s cards. BGS Smartcard Systems AG is the official dealer and distributor of Visa International smart-technologies is Russian and the former USSR market.
It was founded in 1997 and holds right for software and technologies of cashless payments based on U.E.P.S standards. U.E.P.S. universal electronic payment system is a system based on smart-card technology. The main technological feature of U.E.P.S. is that all transaction operations are done in off-line mode trough direct contact of two smart-cards.
BGS introduced several large projects for Sberbank of Russia, Promstroybank, Inkombank and some other banks and bank unions in Russia, the leading banks of Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. In September 1996 BGS signed the agreement with Visa International on developing and migration of smart-card product COPAC including U.E.P.S. as a basis. The matter for greater interest is joint project with Sberbank on creating the united smart-card system SberCard cards. Taking scale of spreading and recent issue date into consideration we can say that SberCard is on of the most promising card in Russia.
On Sep 13 1996 during annual meeting of banks-members of international payment system VISA International announced a new product a new plastic card with microprocessor Chip Off-line Preauthorized Card. This product has no special brand name yet, abbreviation COPAC was taken as a working version of a brand name. Since 1992 BGS company has exclusive right for distribution U.E.P.S technology in the former USSR, Western Europe and Austria.
VISA International declared in the second quarter of 1997 of the new pilot project with Sberbank of the Russian Federation and Inkombank Union Card on introducing COPAC technology. After this the pilot project was over new COPAC specification became available world wide.