Octopus card

stored value smart card in Hong Kong

The Octopus card is a reusable contactless stored value smart card for making electronic payments in Hong Kong. Started in September 1997 to collect fares for the MTR, the Octopus card system is the second contactless smart card system in the world, after the Korean Upass, and has been widely used for all public transport in Hong Kong.[1] It led to the development of Oyster card in London.

Octopus reader at an MTR ticket gate
Octopus card reader at a McDonald's restaurant in Central

Term change

Octopus card
Traditional Chinese
Simplified Chinese

Baat Daaht Tùng (Cantonese Pronunciation) translates as "eight-arrived pass" (in Chinese it was accepted as "go-everywhere pass"), where Baat Daaht may translate as "reaching everywhere". It was selected by the head of the MTR, the parent company of Octopus Cards Limited, in a naming competition held in 1996.[2]

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References change

  1. "Hong Kong Smart Card System". The World Bank Group. Archived from the original on 4 March 2007. Retrieved 13 February 2007.
  2. "八達通控股有限公司里程碑 (lit. Milestones of Octopus Holdings Limited)" (in Chinese). Octopus Holdings Limited. Archived from the original on 9 February 2006. Retrieved 28 February 2007.

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