Credit Agricole, a retail banking group based in Paris, is teaming up with Gemalto to launch a large-scale deployment of contactless EMV banking cards in France.

The deployment will leverage the secure Optelio contactless EMV banking card certified by “Groupement d’Interet Economique – Carte Bancaire” (GIE_CB). With it, cardholders can make purchases by simply waving or tapping their card in front of a contactless reader at the point-of-sale for transactions less than 20 euros (approximately USD $26); purchases above that amount will require a PIN verification.

The card also features additional protections that reinforce security and complement the traditional EMV payment functionality. The technology also saves time for both merchants and cardholders and reduces cash handling.

These added features provide improved flexibility while maintaining a high level of risk management for the French market and Credit Agricole.