Online payments expected to grow ‘exponentially’
Wirecard starts handling Royal Air Maroc’s online payments
Financial commerce platform Wirecard has begun handling online payments for Morocco’s national airline Royal Air Maroc which will join the oneworld alliance mid-2020.
Wirecard will now process all Visa, Mastercard and Maestro payments for the flag carrier and handle credit card payments made via travel agency or airline agent ticket transaction systems.
This includes ARC, Accounts Receivable Conversion, and Iata’s BSP, Billing and Settlement Plan, which serves more than 400 airlines and processed more than EUR 221.6 billion in 2018.
Royal Air Moroc will join the oneworld alliance in mid-2020 and currently has 7.4 million annual passengers and an average of 245 daily departures. It is one of Africa’s leading and fastest growing airlines.
Eckart Reiche, Wirecard vice president global airline sales, said: “The large part of air travel bookings is now paid for online and this trend is set to grow exponentially as payments become more digital. In 2018 alone, air travel booked over the internet generated a revenue of over EUR 360 million worldwide.
“Not only is Morocco a top tourist destination, Casablanca, as the major hub for Royal Air Maroc, connects flights to North and South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and in the near future, Asia.
“We are proud to leverage on our expertise in global digital payments for Royal Air Maroc and add another national airline to our already extensive client portfolio.”
Royal Air Maroc was founded in 1957 and currently operates 61 aircrafts with plans to grow.
Yassine Berrada, Royal Air Maroc chief financial officer, added: “To reflect our global presence and reach, we are constantly broadening the scope of our service offerings, which includes ensuring a convenient and easy payment experience no matter how our passengers choose to book flights with us.
“We are delighted to be cooperating with Wirecard in the area of digital payments.”
