Visa Europe announced it has signed a five year managed services contract with BT to migrate its transaction network onto BT’s 21CN Global network. The agreement will move Visa Europe onto an efficient Internet Protocol (IP) based network, promising its 4,600 member banks in 36 countries a superior level of service through increased support, improved business continuity and enhanced network security.

Visa Europe has a technically advanced card processing platform built specifically for Europe and handling more than six billion transactions in 2007. It not only provides cross-border inter-bank switching, but it is also the primary domestic processor in 16 European markets.

BT and Visa Europe have established a strong relationship over the last seven years, developing the processing technology to match Visa’s increasingly active and expanding user base. The latest agreement will see Visa Europe improve operations through the use of a single supplier and a flexible network making further upgrades and developments far simpler than were previously possible.

Steve Chambers, CIO of Visa Europe, said: “Visa Europe processed transactions worth €1.3 trillion during 2007 so scalability and resilience go hand- in- hand for us. The trust of our customers is of paramount importance, and BT has given us the reliability, security and flexibility to successfully service our member banks and their customers going forward.”

Francois Barrault, CEO, BT Global Services, said: “Visa Europe has a huge responsibility to its member banks and their customers and requires support from a global provider with a reputation for unrivalled infrastructure performance. Visa Europe’s transaction network is on the front line of its service offering, and BT provides focused and scalable support for this mission-critical infrastructure.”