VISA Style payment cards are replaced with Mastercard cards

22.03.2021 - 14:00

To continue improving the services offered to our customers, we have sent new Mastercard payment cards to customers who are using VISA Style cards. In this article we summarised the answers to the most frequently asked questions of our customers about the received Mastercard cards.

I have not ordered a new card. Why did I receive it?

Since October of 2020 SEB no longer issues new VISA Style cards to customers, as well as gradually replaces the existing VISA cards with Mastercard payment cards.

Due to the spread of COVID-19, in March we decided to send new Mastercard payment cards with contactless function to our customers as soon as possible, so that our customers could make purchases as safely as possible.

Mastercard payment cards provide all the usual operations, as well as allow to pay for smaller purchases without entering a PIN code and create a digital version of the card that you can use for payments with an Android phone.

This replacement of VISA cards is provided free of charge. In addition, all the existing agreements remain in force. Therefore customers do not need to sign any additional documents to begin using the new card. The PIN code of the new card remains the same as for the current VISA card.

My VISA card will not expire for quite some time. Will I be able to still use it?

All VISA cards issued by SEB will be automatically closed on 29 June, 2021.

It means that all the existing VISA cards can be used to this date. However, please note that after this date all the VISA cards and non-activated Mastercard payment cards will be automatically closed.

If the customer agrees to use a Mastercard instead of a VISA payment card, we advise to activate the new card as soon as possible. It will allow our customers to avoid the situation when the funds are no longer accessible due to the automatic closing of the cards.

By activating the new Mastercard payment card, the current VISA card is automatically closed.

I am already using a Mastercard payment card and do not want another. What to do?

The customer can freely choose whether to activate the new Mastercard payment card or not. If the customer does not want to use another Mastercard card, it can simply remain inactivated. There is no commission fee charged for not activating the card.

The customer can decide until 29 June, when all the inactivated Mastercard payment cards will be closed. The current VISA cards can also be used until 29 June, which is the date when all the VISA cards issued by SEB will be automatically closed (unless the customer has activated the new Mastercard, thus closing VISA card). For security purposes, we advise to destroy the closed plastic cards by cutting them up and utilising them.

I previously blocked my VISA card so it would not be replaced with Mastercard. What to do?

If the customer does not want to use the received Mastercard payment card, it can simply remain inactivated. If the card will not be activated until the end of June, it will be automatically closed. There is no commission fee charged for not activating the card.

Why are VISA Style cards closed?

We are constantly improving the services provided to our customers, and we have decided to issue and service only Mastercard cards with contactless payment functionality throughout the Baltics.

These cards provide all the usual operations, as well as allow you to pay for smaller purchases without entering a PIN code, which is a highly important functionality during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also possible to create a digital version of the Mastercard payment card that you can use for payments with Android phone.