BEIRUT, Lebanon & RIVERWOODS, Ill. areeba and Discover signed a strategic agreement that increases the global acceptance footprint for both organisations. The agreement gives Discover, Diners Club International, PULSE and Network Alliance cardholders the ability to use their cards on the areeba network, which includes Point-of-Sale (POS) and e-commerce platforms across Lebanon.

This alliance enhances areeba’s strategy to grow the number of payment options available in Lebanon and providesmore choices to consumers on how they want to pay. The agreementwill benefitcustomers by increasing the number of payment options available and provide them access to more than 48 million outlets in 200 countries. Discover Global Network cardholders will have access to more than 15,000 POS terminals and 800 e-commerce sites at over 8000 local merchants across Lebanon.

areeba’s Chief Commercial Officer, Ramzi Saboury said: “This strategic partnership with Discover reinforces areeba’s continuous efforts to offer multiple payment options and cashless payments facilities across the country. We believe that this new alliance with the Discover Global Network will grant all cardholders across the Discover® Global Network a compelling shopping experience in our country.Through this strategic partnership focusing first on acquiring to allow all Discover cards to be accepted at areeba’s POS and payment gateway networks, we will expand in the near future this agreement to cover issuance of special cards allowing Lebanese banks to introduce cards that will be accepted on the Discover® Global Network for international purchases and cash access outside of Lebanon.”

“Discover strives to be a nimble and flexible partner to organizations around the world by providing them the tools and resources to grow and increase acceptance,” said Matt Sloan, Vice President of International Markets at Discover Global Network. “This agreement with areeba complements Discover’s strategy of creating worldwide alliances that provide consumers with more choices when it comes to how and where they pay.”