Checkout.com has integrated Jaywan, the UAE’s domestic card scheme, into its acquiring platform, enabling merchants to accept Jaywan cards through domestic connectivity while maintaining compliance with local mandates. The integration, announced on 28 September 2026, represents a significant milestone in the UAE’s digital payments infrastructure and marks continued expansion of the global fintech company’s presence in the region.
- Operator: Jaywan is operated by Al Etihad Payments, a subsidiary of the Central Bank of the UAE
- Early adopter: myAster (Aster DM Healthcare’s omnichannel platform) is among the first in the UAE to enable Jaywan as a payment method
- Checkout.com licensing milestone: Became the first global payments provider to secure a UAE acquiring licence in 2023; recently received in-principle approval for a Stored Value Facilities licence
- Partnership timeline: myAster partnered with Checkout.com in December 2025
Jaywan transactions will be automatically recognized and routed through Jaywan payment rails, with the transition managed transparently to merchants. The integration allows merchants to reduce reliance on international payment rails while bringing payment processing onshore and maintaining control over compliance requirements embedded directly into their acquiring platform. The arrangement reduces operational complexity and cost while delivering a consistent checkout experience for end users.
Enabling Jaywan is a defining step in the UAE’s payments evolution. We have built Jaywan directly into our acquiring platform so businesses can stay ready for the mandate, protect performance and manage the cost and compliance impact within the same platform they currently use.
– Remo Giovanni Abbondandolo, General Manager, MENA, Checkout.com
Healthcare is increasingly digital, and payments need to evolve with the same speed and simplicity. Offering Jaywan on myAster is another step toward making every part of the digital healthcare journey effortless, secure, and locally relevant for our customers. As one of the early platforms to offer Jaywan, we are proud to support the UAE’s vision for a more connected and resilient digital payments ecosystem, while giving our customers a greater experience on myAster.com and the mobile application.
– Nalla Karunanithy, Chief Executive Officer, Aster Digital Health & Omnichannel
For Jaywan to become a natural part of how businesses and consumers transact across every payment environment, acceptance must be built into the infrastructure they already use. The integration with Checkout.com does that for digital commerce, bringing Jaywan to a broad range of businesses through the acquiring platform they operate on. As more participants across the industry follow, Jaywan becomes increasingly embedded in everyday commerce across the UAE.
– Andrea Cianchetti, Chief Products Officer, Al Etihad Payments
Checkout.com serves leading local and global businesses across the MENA region, including Taptap Send, talabat, Tamara, and Careem. The company secured its UAE acquiring licence from the Central Bank of the UAE in 2023, becoming the first global payments provider to do so.
Nalla Karunanithy, Chief Executive Officer at Aster Digital Health & Omnichannel. Source: LinkedIn
Andrea Cianchetti, Chief Products Officer at Al Etihad Payments. Source: LinkedIn
