Universal Smart Cards and Safetrust Partner to Support Enterprise Adoption of Aliro-Certified Credentials

9 June 2026

Universal Smart Cards, a leading provider of secure credential manufacturing and supply solutions, has announced a strategic partnership with Safetrust Inc. to expand the availability of Aliro-certified physical credentials for enterprise organisations.

The collaboration provides businesses with access to certified physical Aliro cards that work seamlessly with Aliro-compliant readers and the Safetrust Credential Manager platform. By combining Safetrust's expertise in identity and access management with Universal Smart Cards' extensive credential manufacturing capabilities, organisations can confidently begin their transition towards open, interoperable access control systems.

Supporting the Move Towards Open Standards

As organisations modernise their physical access infrastructure, many are looking for practical ways to bridge the gap between existing card-based systems and emerging mobile-first credential strategies. One of the challenges has been sourcing certified physical credentials that support both current and future access control requirements.

This partnership addresses that need by providing a trusted source of Aliro-certified cards that can be deployed alongside existing technologies, enabling a more manageable migration path.

What is Aliro?

Aliro is an open standard developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) to create a common framework for secure physical access. The standard uses certificate-based authentication to enable trusted communication between credentials, readers and management platforms.

Unlike traditional proprietary access control systems, Aliro is designed to promote interoperability, allowing organisations to adopt solutions from multiple vendors without becoming dependent on a single technology provider.

The standard supports a wide range of applications, including door access, lockers, cabinets and other secured assets, all within a unified security architecture.

Key Benefits for Organisations

Greater Vendor Independence

Aliro helps organisations reduce reliance on proprietary technologies by providing access to an open ecosystem of compatible hardware and credentials. This creates greater flexibility when selecting suppliers and planning future upgrades.

Simplified Migration Strategies

Many organisations are not in a position to replace their entire access control infrastructure at once. Aliro-certified credentials can be combined with existing technologies, such as MIFARE DESFire, allowing phased migration programmes that minimise disruption.

Interoperability Across Manufacturers

Aliro-certified credentials are designed to work consistently across compliant reader platforms, helping organisations avoid compatibility concerns when deploying hardware from different manufacturers.

Secure Credential Lifecycle Management

Integration with Safetrust Credential Manager enables organisations to securely issue, update and revoke credentials throughout their lifecycle. This includes support for remote credential management and certificate administration.

Industry Perspectives

"Safetrust has been at the center of the Aliro ecosystem, from demonstrating the first enterprise Aliro card and mobile platform at ISC West to driving real interoperability across vendors. Partnering with them gives our customers a clear path to certified Aliro credentials backed by a platform that handles certificate lifecycle management, reader provisioning, and federated trust. We've spent decades helping customers migrate and upgrade with our multi-credential card solutions. Now we can help them to move forward — on an open standard where they, not their vendors, hold the keys."

Graham Gillot, Vice President of Sales, Universal Smart Cards Inc.

"One of the first questions we hear from enterprise customers ready to move to Aliro is: 'Where do we get the cards and how do we transition from legacy credentials?' This partnership answers that directly. Universal Smart Cards brings 25 years of credential manufacturing, including crossover support for most legacy proprietary technologies, so customers can migrate at their own pace, moving from vendor lock-in to an open standard where they control the keys."

Catherine Carducci, Product Manager, Aliro, Safetrust Inc.

Continuing Momentum for Aliro Adoption

The partnership follows Safetrust's recent demonstrations of Aliro Enterprise card and mobile credential environments at ISC West, highlighting the growing momentum behind open standards within the physical access control industry.

Upcoming Aliro Educational Events

Aliro Decoded Webinar

10 June 2026 | 11:00 AM PT / 2:00 PM ET

Join Safetrust CTO Jason Hart and VP of Advanced Systems Will Holderness for an in-depth discussion covering Aliro deployment models, implementation considerations and migration strategies.

CSA Unify Panel Session

17 June 2026 | 3:45 PM CT | Austin, Texas

Jason Hart of Safetrust will join representatives from the Aliro Working Group, dormakaba, Allegion and SIA SPARC to discuss the commercial adoption of Aliro, its benefits for the industry and the steps required to accelerate implementation.

About Universal Smart Cards

Universal Smart Cards is a specialist manufacturer and supplier of secure credential solutions serving enterprise, government and institutional markets. With extensive expertise in card manufacturing, personalisation and credential fulfilment, the company works closely with technology partners to deliver high-quality physical credentials at scale.

About Safetrust

Safetrust is a global provider of identity and access technologies, delivering mobile credential solutions, cloud-based identity orchestration and enterprise security platforms. Through an open and standards-based approach, Safetrust enables trusted identity experiences across both physical and digital environments.

For more information, visit safetrust.com.

Media Contacts

Universal Smart Cards

Chris Hall
Marketing
[email protected]
+1 800 810 4959

Safetrust Inc.

Brooke Grigsby
[email protected]
+1 214 960 1705 ext. 110

Aliro is a trademark of the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA). MIFARE® and DESFire® are registered trademarks of NXP Semiconductors. HID®, iCLASS® and Seos® are registered trademarks of HID Global. LEAF® Verified is a trademark of Wavelynx Technologies. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.