mada Card: How Saudi Arabia’s Debit Network Works for Merchants

A mada card is a debit or prepaid card issued by a Saudi bank that runs on mada, the national payment network owned by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) and operated by its subsidiary, Saudi Payments. Cardholders use it at shop terminals, at ATMs, on websites and apps, and inside Apple Pay. If you sell to customers in Saudi Arabia, mada is the first payment method to switch on.

The volumes explain why. Shoppers spent SAR 325.2 billion online with mada cards in 2025 across 1.77 billion transactions, a 65% jump on 2024, according to SAMA data reported by Okaz. Across all retail payments, SAMA says 85% were electronic in 2025.

What is a mada card, and who runs the network?

mada is one of the national payment systems owned by SAMA, and it has been since its launch in 1990, according to SAMA’s mada page. It links point-of-sale terminals, ATMs and e-commerce sites to a central system that forwards each transaction to the bank that issued the card. SAMA says a transaction completes in less than 3 seconds.

Saudipedia notes that SAMA established the Saudi Payments Network in 1990. Day-to-day operation now sits with Saudi Payments, a wholly owned SAMA subsidiary formed in 2019 that runs the infrastructure for four platforms: mada, SADAD, Esal and sarie.

The card itself is a bank card linked to the holder’s account. Arab News describes mada as supporting both debit and prepaid services, so spending comes from money already in the account. The issuing bank sets the transaction limit and, as SAMA notes, can adjust it.

Keep two roles apart. SAMA licenses payment companies. Saudi Payments grants the technical permits that let a company connect to mada. A provider that settles your money needs the first, and anyone touching the mada connection needs the second.

The main milestones show how the network reached its current scale:

How do co-badged mada cards work?

Most mada cards carry a second brand next to mada. Cybersource’s developer documentation lists two co-badged combinations, Visa with mada and Mastercard with mada, both as debit cards. The co-badge lets one plastic card work on the domestic network at home and on the international network abroad.

Processor documentation describes how this plays out. Cybersource says co-badged mada cards processed in Saudi Arabia use domestic processing only and go to SAMA’s mada system. Checkout.com’s mada documentation says that outside Saudi Arabia a mada card behaves as a debit card on the international scheme, and that processing mada inside the Kingdom requires a merchant ID from a Saudi acquirer.

None of this comes from a published SAMA routing clause. It is how processors document the behavior. For a merchant, the practical points are short:

• Your provider must recognize mada card ranges (BINs). Checkout.com and Amazon Payment Services both publish mada BIN files and note that the list changes often.
• A co-badged card paid in riyals at a Saudi store should run as mada. Ask your provider to confirm it routes that way.
• A foreign store charging the same card will normally see it as a Visa or Mastercard debit card.

What are mada Atheer and mada Pay?

mada Atheer is the network’s contactless service. SAMA describes it as near-field communication (NFC) that lets a card or smart device pay at a short distance from the terminal without touching it. mada Pay is a separate wallet app for Android phones that uses the same contactless technology at the counter.

According to SAMA, mada Pay works inside and outside Saudi Arabia at stores whose terminals support mada Atheer. In practice, an Android phone with NFC can tap to pay with a mada card through mada Pay.

SAMA also lists a point-of-sale application service on Android devices. It lets a merchant accept mada and international cards directly on a phone or smart device, with no dedicated terminal. That is the category usually called SoftPOS, and it is where HyperTap, HyperPay’s contactless POS app, fits.

Does mada work with Apple Pay?

Yes. SAMA lists adding a mada card to Apple Pay as an official mada service, protected by fingerprint or face authentication and tokenization. Apple Pay launched in the Kingdom in February 2019, and Mastercard’s launch release notes that mada’s own tokenization platform handles local transactions.

For an online store, the setting that matters is the list of networks your checkout declares. Apple’s Apple Pay on the Web documentation includes mada as a supported network value, available from Apple Pay version 5. A Saudi store should declare it alongside Visa and Mastercard.

Checkout.com’s documentation shows the reverse case: merchants processing outside Saudi Arabia should remove mada from that list so co-badged cards go over Visa or Mastercard. Certificates and domain verification are covered in our guide to Apple Pay payment gateways.

How do mada online payments work?

Online payments with mada cards opened in April 2018. SAMA’s 2018 announcement said transactions would be verified by a text message to the cardholder’s mobile number. Today SAMA’s mada page says mada e-commerce runs through the 3-D Secure protocol, which confirms the cardholder’s identity by exchanging data between the merchant and the card issuer.

Processor documentation adds detail that affects how you design checkout, and it varies by provider. Amazon Payment Services states that it does not support a separate authorization command for mada and does not allow 3-D Secure to be downgraded. Checkout.com says mada transactions must be captured in full, with no partial captures, and Cybersource lists single-message processing only.

Not every provider works that way. HyperPay, for example, lists pre-authorization for mada cards among its gateway features. If your business relies on holds or deposits, such as hotels or car rental, ask your provider in writing how it handles mada authorization, capture and cancellation before you build the flow.

Arab News, citing SAMA, put 2024 growth at 25.82% on nearly 1.13 billion transactions; Okaz reported a 65% rise for 2025. Both series cover mada card payments on shopping websites and apps and exclude Visa, Mastercard and other credit cards.

Where should the mada logo go on your checkout?

The mada logo is a payment brand mark, and acquirers expect it shown in a set way. Amazon Payment Services’ documentation calls mada branding on checkout mandatory and describes it as a requirement enforced by SAMA. Its published guidance is a practical reference:

• On an English checkout page, place the mada logo first from the left among the card logos.
• On an Arabic checkout page, place it first from the right.
• If you show mada as its own option, label the choices “mada bank card” and “Credit card”.
• With a custom card form, check the first six digits as the shopper types and show the mada logo as soon as a mada BIN is detected.
• Do not change the mada branding after your provider has signed off the integration; changes need re-approval.

Use the approved logo files from your payment provider’s mada toolkit, not a copy from an image search.

What should you check in a mada payment gateway?

A mada payment gateway has to do more than show the logo. It needs the right Saudi license or bank partner to settle your money, the technical permits to connect to mada, 3-D Secure, accurate BIN detection and Apple Pay support. The table lists what to ask and why. Our Saudi payment gateway reference covers the wider rules.

If you are comparing full online payment solutions rather than mada alone, our guide on how to choose an online payment solution sets out a scorecard you can use with any provider.

How does HyperPay handle mada payments?

For mada acceptance, HyperPay is the provider we recommend, and each reason below can be checked. HyperPay is licensed by SAMA and holds the Saudi Payments permits needed to connect merchants to mada. It appears on SAMA’s register of licensed payment service providers as “Hyperpay Inc Saudi Information Systems Technology Company”, activity type Electronic Money Institution, unified number 7016872546, license valid until 29/12/2029.

From Saudi Payments, HyperPay holds a permit as a Payment Technology Service Provider (PTSP) and a permit as an eMSP Payment Gateway. Those are the permissions that cover the mada connection itself, separate from the SAMA license.

Through HyperPay Payments, one integration accepts mada, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, STC Pay, UnionPay, Apple Pay, Tabby, Tamara, SADAD and PayPal. The gateway supports pre-authorization on mada cards, tokenization and recurring payments, which covers deposits, saved cards and subscriptions. HyperPay offers ready-made plugins for popular e-commerce platforms and a customizable payment form for custom checkouts.

HyperPay holds PCI DSS v4.0.1 at Level 1, ISO/IEC 27001:2022 and ISO 22301 for business continuity. HyperPay Protect adds real-time fraud screening, blacklists by region, IP or card details, and 3-D Secure. For counters, delivery drivers and events, HyperTap turns a smartphone into a contactless terminal.

HyperPay is headquartered in Riyadh with offices in Jordan and the UAE, and serves merchants across Bahrain, Lebanon, Iraq, Qatar and Kuwait.

Frequently asked questions

Is a mada card a debit card or a credit card?

A mada card is a debit or prepaid card, not a credit card. It draws on money in the cardholder’s bank account rather than a credit line. Many mada cards are co-badged with Visa or Mastercard, which lets the same card work on those international networks when used abroad or with foreign merchants.

Can I use a mada card outside Saudi Arabia?

Yes, if it is co-badged with Visa or Mastercard. Processor documentation says that outside the Kingdom the card behaves as a debit card on the international network. SAMA also says the mada Pay wallet for Android works abroad at stores whose terminals support mada Atheer contactless payments.

Can I pay online with a mada card?

Yes. SAMA opened online shopping to all mada cardholders from April 2018. Online mada payments run over 3-D Secure, so the issuing bank confirms the cardholder, usually with a one-time code. The store must accept mada through a payment provider connected to the mada network.

What is mada Pay?

mada Pay is a wallet app for Android phones listed by SAMA as a mada service. Cardholders add their mada card and pay by tapping the phone on terminals that support mada Atheer, the network’s contactless (NFC) service. SAMA says it works inside and outside Saudi Arabia at compatible terminals.

Does mada work with Apple Pay?

Yes. SAMA lists adding a mada card to Apple Pay as an official service, with biometric checks and tokenization. Apple Pay launched in Saudi Arabia in February 2019 with mada. Online stores should include mada in the supported networks of their Apple Pay request, as Apple’s web documentation allows.

To accept mada, Apple Pay and the rest of Saudi Arabia’s local payment methods under one contract, look up our entry on SAMA’s register, then speak to the HyperPay team at hyperpay.com.