Edenred Belgium revolutionises the use of meal voucher card

Edenred, the world and Belgian leader in digital payment solutions for specific applications (Ticket Restaurant, Ticket EcoCheque, Ticket Compliments, Ticket Sport & Culture and Consumption Voucher), is launching a meal voucher card with technology unprecedented in the Belgian market. The meal voucher is the most common employee benefit in Belgium.

Partnership Edenred and Mastercard

The combination of the Edenred and Mastercard technologies offers a host of completely new opportunities for both cardholders and the Belgian retail sector. The red version of the Edenred card can now be used in a much broader network of shops that accept Mastercard today. It can be used for physical, contactless and online payments and also, for the first time, for mobile payments with Google Pay. Finally, this card is made of recycled material, a first in the world of payment cards in Belgium.

Card compatible with all terminals on the market and e-commerce sites

French fries, a typical Belgian dish, can be purchased with a meal voucher card

Edenred is launching a new version of its card, a handy innovation that allows holders to take advantage of the various benefits granted by their employer. The payment market and the habits of Belgians have evolved considerably in recent years. By combining Mastercard’s open payment system with a proprietary application, the new version of the Edenred card is compatible with all terminals on the current and future market, as well as with all Belgian e-commerce sites. This means that eligible Belgian merchants no longer have to take any technical steps to accept the Ticket Restaurant, Ticket EcoCheque, Ticket Compliments, Ticket Sport & Culture and Consumption Voucher solutions at their points of sale.

The two applications of Edenred and Mastercard will coexist on this new card, a first on the Belgian market of meal vouchers and ecocheques, among others. This means that there will be no impact on shops that are already members of the Edenred network. The Edenred application always gets priority while using the meal voucher card..

A broader network to use meal voucher cards

The combination of the two technologies and the two acceptance networks also increases the number of shops that will be able to accept Edenred meal voucher cards. Of the 40,000 or so shops that already accept Edenred solutions, the acceptance network for this new card will be able to include more than 100,000 merchants.

First card in Belgium made of recycled materials

Another first in Belgium is that the new Edenred card is made of recycled materials, thereby reducing the impact on the environment. Protecting the environment is one of the Edenred Group’s social responsibility priorities. The new Edenred card is made of 85% recycled PVC. The recycled plastic comes from European industrial packaging waste and represents up to 4 grams of recycled industrial waste per card.

First red meal voucher card

The first Edenred meal voucher cards with the distinctive red colour was released in May. Each customer’s employees automatically receive their new card when their current card expires. Users do not have to take any action to replace their card. In total, more than 1.5 million cards will be launched on the Belgian market in the coming months.