Shopping centre in Newbridge, County Kildare releases statement on gift cards suspension

A shopping centre located in Newbridge has issued a statement regarding its gift cards policy.

The announcement follows after news broke that the company UAB PayrNet has lost its licence, due to suspicions of money laundering flagged by regulators in Lithuania.

The company provides gift vouchers for a number of Irish shopping centres, including The Square in Tallaght and Liffey Valley Shopping Centre, both of which are located in County Dublin, as well as the Whitewater Shopping Centre (WSC) in Newbridge.

Management at WSC released a statement on its official website, which reads as follows:  "Due to circumstances beyond our control, we are currently unable to sell or accept gift cards at Whitewater Shopping Centre.

"This situation arises from UAB PayrNet, the payments firm responsible for managing the funds of gift cards, having their licence revoked.

"We understand that this may be concerning and inconvenient and want to assure you that this issue is not confined to our shopping centre, but it is affecting other centres and service providers across Ireland and Europe that also use the services of UAB PayrNet."

Management continued: "At this stage, the full implications and the timeline for a resolution are not completely clear. However, we are working closely with the gift card provider and exploring every possible avenue to rectify the situation as swiftly as possible.

"In the interim, we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding.

"We will continue to keep our site management team informed and provide further updates as more information becomes available."

Management at WSC also included a Frequently-Asked Questions section following their statement, which can be read here.