Visa expands global transaction processing with new data centre in Singapore

The two facilities will commence processing global transactions next year.

Singapore to impose visa requirements on North Koreans from October
Visitors standing at the immigration counter of the Changi International Airport in Singapore Reuters (Representational Image)

Global payments technology company Visa unveiled two new data centres as part of its expanded transaction processing capabilities. The new global processing hubs in Singapore and in the United Kingdom are expected to improve the group's infrastructure and strengthen its capability to introduce new methods to pay.

The Singapore and UK data centres will complement Visa's existing processing facilities in North America. With four synchronized data centres, Visa will be able to boost the redundancy and resilience of its infrastructure, minimizing the likelihood of service disruptions to its 16,600 financial institutions, million of merchant acceptance locations, and 3 billion cards. The two facilities will commence processing global transactions next year.

In the spotlight is its 10,000 sqft. data centre in Singapore. This hub is the group's first transaction processing centre in Southeast Asia and will serve clients, cardholders and merchants across the region.

Visa Group Executive for Asia Pacific Chris Clark said Singapore is already a major hub for the Visa business. Interestingly, the new data centre is Visa's third major investment in Singapore in the last two years.

In September 2016, the group launched the first international campus of Visa University in the city-state. Earlier in April 2016, it opened the Singapore Innovation Centre, a hub for clients, partners and developers across the region to work alongside Visa experts and jointly create next-generation commerce applications.

"With our new processing facility in Singapore, we're strengthening our ability to meet rising demand for digital payments, while driving the pace of payment innovation across the Asia Pacific region," he said in a statement.

Singapore Economic Development Board Assistant Managing Director Kelvin Wong stated that the Visa's choice to set up their data centre in Singapore reinforces the city-state's position as a trusted business and technology partner.

"This investment strengthens the sophistication of Visa's business footprint in Singapore and is a testament to Singapore's regional leadership in data management and connectivity," Wong noted.

READ MORE