Kuwait Finance House - Bahrain (KFH-Bahrain), a leading Islamic commercial and investment bank, today announced that it is to shortly introduce the first Islamic EMVTM compliant chip based card in the region conforming to VISA standards with the support of Arab Financial Services, the region's leading provider of electronic-payments and consumer finance outsourcing services. KFH-Bahrain's consumer banking and finance services combine a broad range of innovative products and services with exceptional customer care. The Bank's products and financing facilities are developed with the aim of providing for the long-term needs of customers and those of the local market, which continue to increase. Thinking innovatively and ultimately seeking to deliver superior products is at the core of the Bank's strategy. "Whilst many banks in the region have launched EMV compliant card products, KFH-Bahrain will be the first to launch an EMV chip based card structured through Islamically acceptable instruments. Once again we are raising the bar on customer service by launching the most secure Islamic card product available in region today," said Khalid Rafee, Consumer Finance Manager at KFH-Bahrain. "The AFS team has enjoyed an excellent relationship with KFH-Bahrain and we are delighted to join in this announcement of the first Islamic EMV chip card in the region. Supporting our customers in the introduction of pioneering technology is of great importance to us at AFS as this initiative demonstrates." said Mr. Rasool Hujair, AFS CEO. As part of the contract, AFS provided KFH-Bahrain with a wide range of services including application setup, online testing, VISA certification, chip card vendor selection, technical support and consultancy services leading up to go live.