Oriental City Group plc
Oriental City Group plc: OCG becomes the Largest and Most Productive Partner to China Unionpay in Thailand
Oriental City Group plc / Miscellaneous Release of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG. The issuer / publisher is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 May 2007 Oriental City Group Plc ('OCG' or 'the Group') OCG becomes the Largest and Most Productive Partner to China Unionpay in Thailand Oriental City Group (PLUS Ticker: OCGP), the Hong Kong based financial services group specialising in Lifestyle Credit Card issuance and payment services, announces that during the past 12 months it has processed, on average, over 50% of all China Unionpay ('CUP') card transactions in Thailand, thereby solidifying the Group’s leading position as the largest market shareholder in that country. OCG was amongst the first financial institutions to introduce China Unionpay Card Payment Services internationally outside China. Oriental City Group Thailand Ltd, the Group’s CUP card acceptance business in Thailand was set up in February 2005 to enable Chinese tourists to use their CUP credit and debit cards outside China, with more than RMB120 million of transactions being processed through the OCG payment system since its inception. Similar to the Visa and Mastercard networks, China Unionpay is a payment platform system/association formed by all major banks in China, under the official charter of the central Chinese government. It is currently the most established association, whilst also being the only official payment system and gateway in China, with over 1 billion CUP debit cards and 56 million CUP credit cards in circulation. The rise in OCG’s market share with CUP is a result of its strategic partnership with Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), one of the largest commercial banks in Thailand and King Power, which is the largest chain of duty free shops in the country. The number of Chinese tourists to Thailand has increased over 25% since 2005, with an average of over one million Chinese tourists visiting the country each year. OCG currently has more than 350 CUP-equipped Point of Sales (POS) in Thailand, with at least 100 more planned in order to meet the growing demand from the existing merchants’ base. Henry Yu, Founder and Chief Executive of OCG, commented: 'Our progress in rolling-out CUP Card Payment Services in Thailand is part of our longer-term strategy to expand CUP card acceptance internationally and I am delighted with the achievements in growth we have made to date. OCG was one of the first financial institutions to introduce CUP card payment services outside China in order to meet the increase in payment needs due to the growth in Chinese tourism around the globe. We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with CUP and expanding CUP Payment Services to other key countries and industries with strong Chinese appeal.' The Directors of Oriental City Group Plc accept responsibility for this announcement. For further information: Oriental City Group Plc Henry Yu, Chief Executive Henry.yu@ocg.com.hk Anthony Mak, Vice President +852 (2546) 8808 anthony.mak@ocg.com.hk Atlantic Law LLP Matthew Thompson +44 (0) 20 7616 2888 matthew.thompson@atlantic-law.com Conduit PR Ltd Christian Taylor-Wilkinson/Jos Simson +44 (0) 20 7429 6603 jos@conduitpr.com Christian@conduitpr.com NOTES TO EDITORS: Oriental City Group Plc issues Lifestyle Credit Cards in south-east Asia and offers exclusive and unique platform-wide privileges to customers based on their respective lifestyle interests. Founded in 2001, OCG launched its first Lifestyle Card in Hong Kong 2002, the 'Golf VISA Card', accumulating over 20,000 members within one year and today has the largest golfers’ database in Asia. Since then OCG has launched a further three Lifestyle Cards in Hong Kong, including the Lady's Card and Man's Card for the health & beauty market, the Family Card, and the first ever 'Golf Card' in China. OCG is set to further expand its portfolio with four more Lifestyle Cards set to be introduced in China in 2007. OCG is among the first financial institutions introducing China Unionpay Card Payment Services internationally outside China, in order to meet the increasing payment needs of the growing Chinese tourists around the globe. DGAP 03.05.2007 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
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