The FINANCIAL — MasterCard marked an important milestone in its presence in the Muslim lifestyle segment with its latest collaboration with Zilzar.com, the world’s first global Muslim Lifestyle Marketplace platform, according to MasterCard.
The launch of Zilzar.com was officiated by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak at the 10th World Islamic Economic Forum in Dubai which was attended by leaders and experts in the global economic scene.
The collaboration will see MasterCard offering its expertise in world leading payment technology to support Zilzar.com’s infrastructure and provide a safe, secure and scalable payments capability which can grow with the marketplace as consumer and business needs for Halal trade and commercial information evolve.
“The Muslim lifestyle market has shown tremendous growth and has huge potential. MasterCard is delighted to be able to partner with Zilzar to deliver seamless payment services for this impressive best-of-breed platform that has been specifically designed to cater to the needs of this dynamic US$2.5 (RM8.15) trillion segment. This collaboration truly is an important one for us as it underscores our commitment to ensure payments are safe, smart and secured at all times,” said Safdar Khan, group country manager, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei; group head, Islamic Payments, Southeast Asia, MasterCard.
“Zilzar will meet the needs of all parties by providing a more centralized and accessible online hub, a one-stop shop where products can be marketed globally, safely and ethically. The world is looking for the next BRICS story, growth market with growth demographics, and Zilzar is the e-vehicle for the halal super-highway for empowering micro-SMEs, SMEs, and export ready SMEs into these new markets for growth,” said Rushdi Siddiqui, Chief Executive Officer of Zilzar.
For years, MasterCard has been one of the leading innovators in developing and building secure payment infrastructures that can enhance the way businesses transact and operate. Equipped with intelligent technology and the latest security tools, the payments infrastructure set up for Zilzar.com is designed to enable merchants and consumers to perform secured transactions with ease and convenience.
Zilzar.com is a business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) platform which will provide robust information and content for users, sellers, buyers, and halal certification bodies, engaging them across sectors of Islamic finance, food, travel, logistics, cosmetics and fashion, among others.
It will also provide sellers free digital store-fronts, hence, an e-souq market. Zilzar’s technology platform has been built using the most contemporary technology and usability standards like flat design and responsive layouts. Much like leading social networks, the buyers and sellers can follow each other and never miss a deal, making it the world’s first trading social network, according to MasterCard.
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