UnionPay is accepted at 90% of ATMs and POS terminals in Spain

MADRID, Jan. 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- UnionPay International announced today that it has cooperated with Banco Cooperativo in Spain to enable the latter's 81,000 POS terminals and 2600 ATMs to accept UnionPay cards, further expanding the acceptance scope of UnionPay in the small and medium towns in Spain. Now, UnionPay is accepted at 90% of ATMs and POS terminals in Spain and will realize fuss-free usage both online and offline within this year.

According to the Report on China to Europe Travel Trend in the First Half of 2017 recently issued by China Tourism Academy together with major travel agencies in China, the number of Chinese tourists to Europe grew by 65% year-on-year during the first half of 2017, and Spain has become one of the most popular destinations among Chinese tourists. In 2017, the transaction volume of UnionPay cards in Spain increased by over 30% year-on-year.

To date, UnionPay is accepted at over 2.3 million merchants in 39 European countries and regions, accounting for half of all the bankcard-accepting merchants in Europe. To further improve tourists' payment experience in Spain, UnionPay International is accelerating its cooperation with major institutions in Spain to improve its acceptance environment. Now, UnionPay is extensively accepted at duty-free shops, department stores, tourist attractions, hotels and restaurants in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville and many other cities. UnionPay-accepting merchants include World Duty Free, El Corte Ingles and quite a few hotel groups. Repsol gas stations, Eurostars and Exe hotel group will start accepting UnionPay cards soon.

Banco Cooperativo is affiliated with El Grupo Caja Rural, and its merchants are across Spain. UnionPay International's cooperation with the Bank will extend the acceptance scope of UnionPay cards to the small and middle merchants in Spain.

In addition, UnionPay cardholders may enjoy abundant discounts and privileges in Spain. For instance, El Corte Ingles stores in Madrid and Barcelona offer three-fold privileges to UnionPay cardholders: shopping card worth 20 Euro, cash rebate worth 10% of the spending amount, and free wine/drinks and snacks. About 15 famous merchants in Passeig de Gràcia business district offer discounts up to 30%-off to UnionPay cardholders too.