JCB International Co. and Viva Wallet announced a joint licensing agreement that allows JCB payment cards to be used at the POS and online at 108,000 merchants in 12 European countries, beginning with Belgium, Cyprus, France, Greece, Romania and the U.K., according to a press release.

Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Spain will be added soon to the list of accepting nations, the release said. The agreement covers JCB contactless and 3D Secure transactions in all countries.

The agreement will give JCB cardholders — including about 1 million Russian tourists — the ability to access thousands of merchants in the 12 accepting countries.

"Greece received 30 million visitors in 2017, making it one of the most visited countries in the world, so its imperative for JCB to have a presence here as we extend our wider reach into Europe to ensure our cardmembers enjoy a seamless payments journey when visiting European countries," Tsuyoshi Notani, managing director, JCB International Europe Ltd., said in the announcement.