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Mastercard Creates New Ways to Pay, Better Virtual Credit Cards

A new partnership aims to accelerate the use of virtual cards for business-to-business travel payments.

Texas-based travel technology company Sabre  (SABR) - Get Free Report Corporation and the UK's Conferma Pay have worked together on virtual payments technology for travel firms since 2011. This was long before they made it official last August, when Sabre acquired the business payment software company for for $72.5 million.

American Airlines  (AAL) - Get Free Report had founded Sabre more than 60 years ago, in 1960. It became its own entity in 2000.

In 2011, Sabre and Conferma Pay launched a partnership for hotel payments that soon grew to cover Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the Americas.

In 2014, the two companies started Sabre Virtual Payments for air travel. The technology was quickly picked up and widely used by travel agents by 2016.

Virtual card payments use a random number that is charged just one time for a specific total amount. Traditional cards use one designated number for multiple transactions. Among their benefits, virtual payment cards can help protect users' identities and reduce the threat of fraud.

Sabre, the largest global distribution systems provider for air bookings in North America, acquired Conferma Pay on August 8, 2022. The move implies a major investment for Sabre in Conferma Pay's technology.

"Sabre has had a successful partnership with Conferma Pay for many years, and Conferma Pay is the basis upon which its Sabre Virtual Payments proposition is built," Sabre said then in a statement. "We believe we are now well-positioned to expand on that proposition with Conferma Pay becoming a Sabre-owned entity."

And combining the two forces was just the beginning of a major plan to power the travel economy with virtual cards.

Mastercard Joins Sabre and Conferma Pay in Partnership

This week, Sabre and Conferma Pay announced a new partnership with Mastercard  (MA) - Get Free Report, saying its objective was to accelerate the use of virtual cards for business-to-business (B2B) travel payments. Sabre also wants to create an "open and independent travel payment ecoystem."

"The payments industry is in the midst of a revolution and there is an increased need for travel companies to better manage the whole payment experience," said Sabre's Roshan Mendis, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, in a press release. "Companies in the travel space – including travel management companies, travel agencies, corporations, issuers and technology partners – need sophisticated solutions and seamless connections."

"Sabre is taking strategic steps to fulfill the needs of our industry, beginning with the acquisition of Conferma Pay," Mendis continued. "Now, the new partnership with Mastercard will help Conferma Pay to build new and enhanced digital capabilities in virtual cards, transforming the payment experience for issuers."

Mastercard Invests in Conferma Pay

The deal involves Mastercard making a minority investment in Conferma Pay.

"A combination of experience, technologies and capabilities will accelerate travel payment innovation and drive inclusive and sustainable growth for the sector," said Chris Fendley, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Partnerships at Mastercard. "Virtual cards deliver visibility, boost liquidity and increase control over B2B payment flows, which enhance payment strategies and empower organizations across the travel value chain to run, grow and protect their business, which has never been more essential."

Conferma Pay says it is connected to more than 700 travel management companies, global distribution systems and online booking tools. It claims to have more than 50 banking partners, doing business by generating virtual cards in almost 100 currencies.

"Through its leading travel marketplace, Sabre connects travel suppliers with buyers from around the globe," according to the press release. "Sabre’s technology platform manages more than $260B worth of global travel spend annually. Headquartered in Southlake, Texas, USA, Sabre serves customers in more than 160 countries around the world."