Tokyo, August 7, 2002 -- JCB, Japan's largest credit card company and an international brand, announced that the total number of JCB-brand EMV IC cards issued in Japan since December 2001 exceeded 3 million in July 2002.

Equipped with the JCB EMV credit payment application"J/Smart", JCB's smart card issuing to cardmembers in Japan was launched commercially after undergoing successful pilot projects, including the Postal Savings project in Omiya City, near Tokyo, and the Electronic Toll Collection systems for highways in Japan.

By the end of March 2003, JCB expects to have issued more than 10 million smart cards, meaning JCB smart cardholders will make up 20% of all JCB members. JCB plans for EMV-based JCB IC migration to be complete by the end of 2006.

As well as incorporating the regular advantages of smart cards such as improved security, JCB`s J/Smart IC cards will also feature multiple applications to improve user functionality for even better customer satisfaction, including contactless applications for transport and ticketing systems, loyalty applications and electronic money.

Outside of Japan, at the same time, JCB has been extending the JCB brand network for EMV migration.

In March, 2002, the first JCB IC transaction outside of Japan was successfully processed at a point-of-sale located in the UK, confirming the cross-border inter-operability of J/Smart . JCB plans to expand EMV acceptance to other countries by the end of this year, and also expects to have J/Smart- based JCB cards issued outside of Japan very soon.

Furthermore, to ensure the successful enhancement of J/Smart infrastructure, JCB has been working closely with various vendors both for issuing and acquiring environments and has already developed a variety of J/Smart compatible products with a number of these vendors.

About JCB Co., Ltd.
JCB Co., Ltd. is an international brand and the largest card issuer in Japan. JCB launched its card business in Japan in 1961 and began expanding overseas in 1981. Its merchant network includes 9.28 million merchants and spans 189 countries and territories, and serves 42 million card members worldwide. As part of its international growth strategy, JCB has formed alliances with more than 200 leading banks and financial institutions globally to increase merchant coverage. For further information, please visit the JCB International homepage at http://www.jcbinternational.com.