March 30, 2017 TnH Global

PayPal eyes growth in India’s booming travel and tourism sector

Electronic payments giant PayPal is making a push to capitalise on India’s increasing online payments boom with big ticket expansions in the tourism and travel sector. It has announced tie-ups with marketplaces for hotel, holiday and ticket booking service providers that it expects would make it easier not just foreign travellers but also Indians.

PayPal has announced merchant partnerships with MakeMyTrip and Vista Rooms. This may be expected to give the global player a foothold in India’s burgeoning travel and tourism sector. The tie-ups are being pegged as a quickfire solution to the demonetisation and the ensuing cash crunch that had left many Indian and foreign travellers stranded in its aftermath. The move may also be aimed at addressing safety and security concerns among foreigners who may want to travel to India.

Hotel, holiday and airline service providers will be able use the platform to automatically send invoices to customers by an email, along with a link that can be followed to complete payment through PayPal.

“At PayPal, we consistently work towards ensuring smoother management and movement of money, and we understand that meaningful collaborations are key to enhancing customer delight,” said Megha Thareja Tyagi, a director for large merchants for PayPal India.

MakeMyTrip too expressed enthusiasm over the partnership, pegging it as a measure aimed at putting prospective consumers at ease. “As a leading player in the online travel segment, we have seen the online hotel market explode thanks to increasing mobile penetration and adoption, especially for last-minute hotel bookings,” said Mohit Gupta, MakeMyTrip’s COO – Hotels & Holidays. “We have made aggressive efforts to tap into this segment and are hopeful that the partnership with PayPal would help in addressing the element of safe and secure transactions, one of the biggest barriers in the consumer’s mind while booking a hotel online,” he added.

“Our partnership with PayPal allows us to provide further payment flexibility to both local and international travellers. Overall, it’s a win-win for both the customer and the company,” said Ankita Sheth, co-founder of Vista Rooms.

News Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com