Voyego transforms the world of payments for the aviation industry - with an independent vendor and PSP agnostic payment platform

CASE STUDY

Voyego transforms the world of
payments for the aviation industry
with an independent vendor and
PSP agnostic payment platform

The aviation industry has undergone serious change in the 21st century,
driven by transformative technologies, new business models, competition
from Low Cost Carriers (LCCs) and changing customer expectations.
Airlines are investing heavily in new technologies to address these
challenges and deliver a personalised passenger experience, with new
methods of payment at the forefront.

CASE STUDY

The Challenge                                     The Solution
The emergence of new, digital channels and        To address these issues, Voyego – the travel
alternative payment methods has redefined         and mobility division within the Comtrade
customer expectations. Gone are the days          Group – developed a ‘Payments Hub’.
where credit and debit cards were the only        Designed for quick and easy integration
options. Now, people have more payment            within existing airline systems, the solution
options and the availability of their preferred   enables airlines to choose the services of
payment method has become a decisive              more than one Payment Service Provider
factor in the purchasing journey. This            (PSP), enabling them to reduce payment
fact, along with the dominance of mobile          fees and offer a greater variety of payment
commerce, means that consumers and                methods across all channels.
merchants alike are increasingly embracing
app-based commerce and in-app payments.           As well as catering for the latest forms of
                                                  payments, the platform is purpose-built and
With more than 300 payment methods                future-proofed, with the ability to combine
available – including WeChat Pay, Alipay,         and streamline the numerous systems
GooglePay, Apple Pay and loyalty schemes          participating in the payment flow at different
– airlines have to provide choice and             stages, without disruption.
convenience in order to attract customers
and remain competitive. By doing so, they         The solution also consolidates passenger
inevitably face greater costs and complexity      behaviours from various channels including
as a result.                                      the mobile app, Global Distribution
                                                  Systems (GDSs), front desk and kiosks. This
Airlines must also consider the importance        provides airlines with a more holistic view of
of PCI and GDPR compliance, regarding the         purchasing patterns and preferences. The
protection of sensitive data, as well as the      Payments Hub also stores and tokenises
increased risk of fraud. All of these factors     passenger data in a centralised platform.
exacerbate an already intricate payments
processing challenge, which involves the
integration of new payment methods within
legacy infrastructure.

The challenge facing the aviation industry
in respect of payments is thus unavoidable
and multilayered: not only do they have to
cater for new types of payments and deliver
an outstanding customer experience, the
platform has to be compatible with existing
systems and deliver benefits for airlines.

The Reward   The Payments Hub streamlines and speeds
             up the process of onboarding new payment
             methods, reducing the time and cost involved in
             the process. This enables airlines to facilitate local,
             frictionless payments.

             When deployed, the Payments Hub will enable
             airlines to automatically gather all payment data
             in one place with no additional IT required. It
             will provide airlines with a global view of all data
             across its providers, as well as custom reports
             and actionable insights that can help merchants.
             Airline can quickly identify which payment
             methods, currencies and providers are driving
             the highest margin for the business.

             In addition, the solution automates and
             streamlines back-office accounting processes,
             including refunds and credits – allowing them to
             match against airline accounting records.

             Furthermore, the Payments Hub collates all
             payment information into a central location
             which helps to deliver a more personalised and
             streamlined passenger experience. Not only do
             travellers have more payment options, they can
             tailor their journey and pay for flights at the touch
             of a button on mobile devices.

             The platform enhances security, offering fraud-
             detection monitoring and enabling the secure
             management of sensitive data. By storing
             and tokenising all payment information in a
             centralised system, the Payments Hub simplifies
             and reduces the cost of being PCI-compliant.

             Integrated within existing systems, the Payments
             Hub accelerates digital transformation for airlines.
             Offering greater flexibility and security, the
             hub provides a frictionless transaction process,
             making every step seamless and simple for
             both the airline and the passenger. This enables
             airlines to better meet the expectations of its
             customer base and drive growth.

CASE STUDY

Summary
Voyego’s independent vendor and PSP agnostic
payment platform enables:

•    Quick onboarding of new PSPs and alternative
     forms of payments
•    Passengers to pay with airline loyalty points
•    Convenient, frictionless and secure in-app
     payments
•    Enhanced mobile experience for passengers
•    A holistic view of all payment information in
     one system
•    Streamlined reconciliation and refund
     processes
•    Identification of the payment methods and
     providers that deliver most value
•    Access to automated reporting tools that drive
     actionable insights

Case Study: Voyego partners
with Aer Lingus to deliver a new
innovative Payments Hub platform
Aer Lingus recognised the need to update
its systems in order to support its growth
and drive digital transformation. The airline
worked with Voyego to develop a version
of the Payments Hub to enable a faster,
frictionless payment experience for guests
and reflect the ever-increasing appetite for
digital engagement within the travel sector.

In essence, the Payments Hub enabled Aer
Lingus to implement new alternative forms
of payments such as Apple Pay and allows
guests to pay with their Aer Club Avios
points. As well as providing new payment
options, the solution offers the convenience
of frictionless and secure in-app payments
which improves the guest experience.

Integrated within its existing systems, the
platform will make it easier for Aer Lingus
to integrate new payment mothods in the
                                                “
future. It allows the company to select and
integrate new payment service providers
who can help to improve improve guest
experience and purchasing activity. The         The aviation industry is
payments hub also automates back office
payment processes for Aer Lingus and            experiencing rapid change.
enables better efficiency when processing       These developments not
payments, including refunds and credits.        only aim to deliver an
Vojin Rakonjac, Head of Payment Solutions,      outstanding e-commerce
Voyego, said: “The aviation industry            experience for passengers
is experiencing rapid change. These             but also reduce airlines’
developments not only aim to deliver an
outstanding e-commerce experience               operational costs.
for passengers but also reduce airlines’
operational costs. In this new digital
environment, airlines must provide
passengers with their preferred payment         Vojin Rakonjac
methods, such as Apple Pay, that work           Head of Payment Solutions
seamlessly on mobile devices.                   Voyego

“We are very proud of our partnership with
Aer Lingus which has helped to accelerate the
company’s digital transformation and innovate
its approach to payments. Of course, it’s
great to also see the rewards of this solution,
including enhanced customer satisfaction,
more efficient processing of payment
transactions and business growth.”

Dave O’Donovan, Director of Digital and
Mobile Technologies, Aer Lingus, said: “The
Voyego team worked with our business and
technology departments to help define the
project requirements and design an effective
solution to meet our business objectives.

“Together, we developed an innovative
platform that delivers variety of new payment
solutions, reduces the cost of payment
processing and provides better functionality
for end-users, our valued guests.”

VOYEGO
Penthouse, Blackthorn Exchange, Bracken Road,
Sandyford Industrial Estate, Dublin 18, D18 P3Y9

              www.voyego.com