Emirates has become the world’s first airline to launch a payment alternative powered by a white-label solution jointly developed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and in partnership with Deutsche Bank.
Michael Doersam, Chief Financial Officer at Emirates said: “Our aim is to provide our customers with choice, convenience, and the best possible experiences at every touchpoint.
“Customers who don’t have a credit card, and those already using direct payments for other purchases, will welcome the simplicity and security of this method when making travel purchases. When it comes to payments solutions, we’ve always kept close to the latest innovations so that we can offer our customers in different markets the most secure and convenient options.”
Ole Matthiessen, Global Head of Cash management at Deutsche Bank said: “The launch of Emirates Pay not only sends a very positive message to all of us that the airline industry is putting Covid behind, but more importantly that Emirates is clearly focused on improving client experience at the transactional level when moving into a brighter, post-Covid world.”
Emirates Pay is an alternative method for travelers to pay for air tickets purchased online by directly debiting their bank account. All payments will be made in real time Open Banking / Request-to-Pay schemes. With this new solution the airline provides all the necessary account and payment information and passengers approve the payment initiation in a convenient way via their online or mobile banking.
For airlines, the new payments solution also offers a cost-competitive payment alternative with faster settlement times, supporting enhanced airline liquidity as well as reduced payment fraud; while for consumers, the new payments solution addresses the demand for more secure and frictionless payment options, including account-to-account payments, for which a card is not required.
