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Paysafe, a leading specialized payments platform, today announced a new payments ‘safeguarding’ acquiring model for airlines in the U.S. and a partnership with ARC, the Virginia-based provider of settlement services for airline transactions initiated through travel agencies in the U.S. and global data solutions. The arrangement sees Paysafe offer ARC’s airlines a payments acquiring solution that gives them financial flexibility by innovating on the traditional approach of tying-up the airlines’ liquidity with their banks to cover risk, which has proven increasingly challenging during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Even before the tailwinds of COVID-19, which the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) estimates resulted in global airline industry losses of $370bn for 2020, airlines faced significant financial exposure. The delay between a traveler buying a ticket and their flight departing has meant that airlines’ merchant acquiring banks consider these payments high-risk and, in many cases, impose significant cash collateral deposits, or holdbacks, on airlines to offset the risk.
Now, as ARC’s network of over 200 airlines navigate the post-pandemic return of air travel, Paysafe’s ‘safeguarding’ acquiring model provides them with an alternative to holdbacks that improves airline liquidity and reduces their overall costs. Launched globally last month (see white paper for more details) and already successfully used by European carriers such as Norwegian Air Shuttle, Paysafe’s solution will see airline ticket payments held by a third-party financial institution before releasing them immediately and in full to the airline according to pre-agreed terms.
Paysafe also allows airlines to offer travelers an extended choice of payment methods for direct sales. In addition to credit or debit card payments processed through Paysafe’s leading payment gateway, travelers can also pay using the Paysafecash eCash solution as well as more than 100 other alternative payment methods, all protected from chargebacks.
Paulette Rowe, CEO of the Integrated and Ecommerce Division (IES) at Paysafe, said: “It’s been a challenging time for airlines around the world, and, as a specialized payments provider to the travel industry, we understand how hard it is for airlines to have their liquidity tied-up by acquiring banks. Our ‘safeguarding’ solution provides an innovative workaround and should really support airlines as they return to growth and emerge from the pandemic.”
Jennifer Watkins, Director, Payments at ARC, commented: “2020 brought unprecedented challenges to the air travel industry, bringing to light the fragility of the relationships between airlines and payment providers. These relationships are particularly important for airlines focused on growing their business in the U.S., since 90% of transactions processed through the ARC settlement system are paid for with a credit or debit card. We are thrilled to be working with Paysafe to offer a new and innovative option for payment processing, helping set airlines up for success in the U.S. market.”
About Paysafe Limited
Paysafe Limited (“Paysafe”) (paysafe.com) is a leading specialized payments platform. Its core purpose is to enable businesses and consumers to connect and transact seamlessly through industry-leading capabilities in payment processing, digital wallet, and online cash solutions. With over 20 years of online payment experience, an annualized transactional volume of US $92 billion in 2020, and approximately 3,400 employees located in 12+ global locations, Paysafe connects businesses and consumers across 70 payment types in over 40 currencies around the world. Delivered through an integrated platform, Paysafe solutions are geared toward mobile-initiated transactions, real-time analytics and the convergence between brick-and-mortar and online payments.
About ARC
As a leader in air travel intelligence and omnichannel retailing, ARC (arcorp.com) provides platforms, tools and insights that help the global travel community connect, grow and thrive. ARC enables the diverse retailing strategies of its customers by providing innovative technology, flexible settlement solutions and access to the world’s most comprehensive air transaction dataset. In 2019, ARC managed more than $97.4 billion in transactions between airlines and travel agencies, representing more than 302 million passenger trips.
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