Packaging

DNP Ushiku Plant Acquires UnionPay Card Manufacturer and Personalizer Certification

Tuesday 22. February 2011 - Yet Another Japanese First for DNP!

Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (DNP) is pleased to announce that our Ushiku plant situated in Ushiku City, Ibaraki Prefecture, which serves as the major manufacturing base for various types of cards, has been certified as personalizer for the UnionPay card.
The Ushiku Plant was previously certified as manufacturer (*1) for the UnionPay card in July 2009, and as a result of being certified as personalizer, DNP has become the first company in Japan to be able to establish a consistent production system, from manufacturing to personalization, for the UnionPay card. And with the addition of UnionPay to the DNP portfolio, DNP becomes the only domestic Japanese card vendor to have acquired manufacturer and personalizer certification for all six global payment brands, the namely, Visa, MasterCard, JCB, American Express, Diners and UnionPay.
By offering magnetic and smart cards with high added value, such as credit cards, debit cards, transportation tickets, e-money, and members ID cards to financial institutions not only in Japan, but also overseas – and particularly Asia – DNP aims to respond to expanded demand for the UnionPay brand.
UnionPay Card
The UnionPay card is a credit and debit card issues by China UnionPay Co., Ltd. head quartered in Shanghai, a company that carries out Chinese domestic interbank network settlements. Some 2.26 billion UnionPay cards have been issued at present, with transactions of 7.7 trillion Yuan (approximately 94 trillion Yen). The cards are accepted at approximately 2.44 million merchants (1.81 million domestic and 630,000 overseas), in more than 90 countries and regions around the world. Japan has also seen a sharp increase in the number of UnionPay card acceptance, and the card may be used at more than 20,000 merchants – mainly department stores and electronics mass-merchandisers – throughout the archipelago. *2
DNP Smart Cards
Since launching smart card research in 1981, DNP has manufactured and personalized cards, developed the software mounted on smart cards, accumulated network related technology and know how, and provided a variety of products and services matching the needs of our clients. DNP has also developed a broad smart card line up from biometric authentication and e-money, including such multi-functional products as cards integrating cash and credit, to low priced products with scaled back memory volumes or functions. DNP has captured a share in excess of 40 percent in the domestic smart card market, and in particular, more than 80 percent in IC cash card market (based on the number of financial institutions). These cards have also been used in transportation tickets and e-money in recent years, and DNP has become the leading domestic smart card vendor, winning a share of approximately 60 percent of the contactless e-money card market that is seeing an expansion.