Armenia has officially launched the issuance of Arca UnionPay co-badged cards under a partnership between the country’s national payment system Armenian Card (Arca) and China’s UnionPay International (UPI). Converse Bank is among the first banks in Armenia to offer the new Arca UnionPay card, giving cardholders access to both a domestic and an international payment network.
A formal ceremony marking the launch of the card issuance was held on September 17. Representatives of the Central Bank of Armenia, Armenian Card, UnionPay International, the Chinese embassy in Armenia, and the broader financial sector took part in the event.
Grant Hakobyan, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Directorate of Converse Bank, said joining the initiative at an early stage was a natural step for the bank. He said the product adds value for customers because Arca cards had previously been used mainly within Armenia’s payment infrastructure, while the co-badged card allows transactions through UnionPay’s international network as well, combining the strengths of both systems.
Hakobyan also highlighted the project’s importance for the international integration of Armenia’s national payment system. In his view, cooperation between Arca and UnionPay expands access to international infrastructure for Armenian banks and their clients.
Arca Director Vardan Khachatryan described the project as unprecedented not only for Arca but for Armenia’s entire payments and settlement ecosystem. He said Armenian banks are receiving, for the first time, the opportunity to issue a joint card that is serviced under Arca rules inside Armenia and through the UnionPay acceptance network outside the country.
He added that this is only the first stage of cooperation, with further solutions planned, including in the area of fast money transfers.
Xiang Yu, Deputy General Manager of the Business Development Department at UnionPay International, said the partnership with Arca is an important step in expanding UnionPay’s presence and deepening its integration with Armenia’s payment market. He said the joint card combines Arca’s local expertise and infrastructure with UnionPay’s international network, giving Armenian cardholders access to the company’s services in multiple countries.
The source notes that three Armenian banks began issuing and servicing cards of the foreign payment system UnionPay International two years ago. Acba Bank and Converse Bank started doing so in May 2024, followed by Evocabank in September 2024. From May 2024 to April 2026, the total number of UPI cards in Armenia reached 339.
All three banks issue and service both local cards and international Visa and Mastercard cards. Of the three, Evocabank was the first to start issuing Arca UPI co-badged cards in September 2026 under the Arca UnionPay Co-badge format, and now the cards are also available at Converse Bank as Arca UnionPay.
The report also recalls that Armenian Card signed a memorandum of understanding in November 2025 with Mastercard and UPI, providing for the issuance in 2026 of Arca co-badged cards that could also be used abroad. In line with those plans, issuance began in the second half of 2026, with Arca UPI cards becoming the first such product to reach the market.
At present, alongside work on tokenizing Arca cards in Google Pay and Apple Pay, a process has also begun to replace digital chips on local cards, including co-badged cards. This is needed to ensure full usability of Arca cards in international services, including token-based payments via Google Pay and Apple Pay.
