Mashill launches credit cards

JAKARTA (JP): Mashill Utama, a publicly-listed bank, has launched a Visa and MasterCard service, the bank's card center manager, John Suwardi, said yesterday.

Mashill director Muliadi Hendri estimates that Indonesia's potential demand for credit and charge cards is 1.25 million cards a year. Bank Mashill plans to release 30,000 to 40,000 cards a year.

Bank Mashill operates 12 automated teller machines in Jakarta, Semarang, Surabaya, Medan, Denpasar and other major cities, he said.

According to Visa International, 14 banks in Indonesia now issue Visa cards, and there were 813,000 Indonesian visa cardholders in June who spent US$323 million abroad in the 12 months until June 30, 1996.

To promote its cards, Mashill is offering a monthly interest rate of 2.8 percent and card fee exemptions for the first year of use. (06)