Flag carrier Ethiopian Airlines will now be accepting payments via Alipay – China's leading alternative payment method (APM), through its mobile app.

The airline has partnered with CellPoint Mobile, a leading provider of sales and payment-side technology solutions for the global travel sector, to enable the payment option.

This is the first APM integration for CellPoint Mobile as part of an ongoing partnership with the flag carrier of Ethiopia.

"CellPoint Mobile has demonstrated its commitment and knowledge of the Africa region as a member of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA), as well as its global reach as a payment service provider," said Miretab Teklaye, director digital, at Ethiopian Airlines. "The Alipay integration is the first in our PSP partnership in China and an important step in our airline's growth strategy for the mobile channel."   

With 100 million Chinese travelling abroad every year, more merchants in Southeast Asia, Western Europe, North America – and now Ethiopia – are investing in mobile solutions to support Alipay for Chinese visitors and tourists, as well as foreign expats living in China. In nearby Japan, the number of stores accepting Alipay doubled to more than 50,000 last year, as mobile payment transactions in China reached a record $12.8 trillion; in comparison, the U.S. had only $49.3 billion in total mobile payment transactions in 2017.

"By adding support for Alipay, Ethiopian Airlines is strengthening its position not only as the flag carrier of Ethiopia, but as a leading airline for commercial air travel within Africa," said Ciaran Wilson, senior sales and account director at CellPoint Mobile. "As part of our ongoing partnership, CellPoint Mobile will continue to support Ethiopian Airlines in its mobile payment strategies and provide more competitive and forward-looking PSP services in an increasingly complex payment environment."

Earlier this year, Ethiopian Airlines and CellPoint Mobile announced an ongoing partnership that includes implementation of the Velocity payment platform – a full merchant-side payment control environment built specifically for the travel industry. Velocity's comprehensive platform enables immediate access to multiple PSPs, acquirers and global consumer wallets and APMs. Velocity also features a PCI DSS Level 1 certified card vault and advanced fraud monitoring – important value-adds for airlines operating to and from the growing APAC region, where local acquirer connections and support for local payment methods are paramount for success. - TradeArabia News Service