· Accelerating the transition from traditional, magnetic stripe cards to chip based cards.

· Presenting and publishing examples of best practice and market studies in order to enhance communication on the value of smart cards in payment.

· Seeking to optimize interoperability between all elements of payment and non-payment smart card based systems.

· Becoming the voice of the payment industry towards standardization committees and payment associations.

The SPA consists of four of the leading industry players in the payment smart card segment, representing worldwide coverage; Gemalto, Giesecke & Devrient, Oberthur Technologies and Sagem Orga.

By combining our substantial knowledge and experience, we are able to use our unrivalled expertise to significantly contribute to the development of the industry and provide added value for financial institutions.