This implies customers of Alternative Airlines’ will be able to purchase flight tickets to various destinations across the world using cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), Dash, Ethereum (ETH), DigiByte (DGB) and Utrust’s native crypto UTK.
The partnership with Utrust has enabled Alternative Airlines to swap the crypto payments it receives to fiat money on the day of receipt, without any delays, safeguarding the firm from cryptocurrency volatility.
Being an IATA-accredited agency, Alternative Airlines hogged the limelight when it was brandished in the 2019 Sunday Times Fast Track Tech 100. Alternative Airlines, which was listed as the top 100 fastest growing tech firms, received the Best Selling Travel Agent award for 2017.
Utrust CEO, Nuno Correia, explained the benefits of the partnership as follows:
“For business or leisure, flight travel can be expensive with consumers saving for months to afford a trip. Considered a high ticket item, it is imperative that consumers are protected when booking flights. Utrust is providing Alternative Airlines’ customers with the increased security and convenience of cryptocurrency payments, and reducing processing fees, to bring greater transparency and trust to the world of online payments. ”
Utrust’s collaboration with Alternative Airlines has also paved way for tourists to opt for the best bargain encompassing all popular airlines such as American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Ryanair, United Airlines, and China Southern Airlines to name a few.
Alternative Airlines, which specializes in remote destinations, has associated with domestic and regional airlines such as Emetebe in the Galapagos Isles.
Sam Argyle, Managing Director of Alternative Airlines, elaborated on the facilities offered by its booking platform, including numerous mode of payments.
“At Alternative Airlines, we are dedicated to providing a seamless transaction process, while empowering our customers to choose how they want to pay. Alternativeairlines.com is a single platform for travellers to easily search and book flights on over 600 airlines. Our customers can currently choose from over 25 payment methods—including all major debit cards and payment plans from all the best-known global providers—as well as over 160 localised currencies. We are incredibly excited, as our partnership with Utrust is the next major step in continuing to tailor the online booking experience to the customer, who will now have the opportunity to pay with cryptocurrency on all of the airlines that we ticket.”
Online Travel Agency (OTA) market is a cut-throat business and low charges for processing payments is a must for success. Conventional card based payments involve fees in the range of 3% to 7%, which may ultimately decide the fate of a travel agency business.
Generally, payment service providers (PSPs) can handle a range of currencies but will eat a considerable percentage of OTA’s profit in the form of processing charges and currency convertibility rates.
As air travel agencies cannot avoid cross-border operations, multiple forms of payment methods popular in a specific jurisdiction are warranted. That creates issues in domestic markets.
By facilitating instant cross border dealings, Utrust is setting new standards in the airlines market with regarding to efficiency, safeguarding of customers interest and crypto-to-fiat settlements with a transaction fee of 1%.