- Singaporean firm YouTrip will work with Visa to offer a cross-border payments service with features such as wholesale exchange rates and fee-free forex transactions.
- The partnership is scheduled to last for six years, and will commence in two major markets in the Southeast Asia region before expanding further across the area.
- Spokespeople for both firms struck a positive note about the pairing, despite the fact that it relies in part on an as-yet-unrealised re-emergence of demand for global transport following the coronavirus pandemic.
A mobile wallet company in Singapore has announced a new partnership with the financial services provider Visa.
YouTrip said that it had secured a partnership with Visa that is set to last for six years.
The partnership will commence in two of Southeast Asia’s most important economic hubs.
The Philippines and Malaysia will be the first places to benefit, though the service – which will focus on cross-border payments – is likely to eventually be rolled out to other locations.
The features of the new service are extensive.
It is expected to include a range of cost-reduction measures for the end user – such as wholesale exchange rates, which are often lower because of bulk-buy discounts.
It is also expected that the service will avoid levying any foreign exchange transaction charges on currency purchases.
YouTrip already operates in some of the region’s key markets, such as Thailand and its native Singapore.
The company has also managed to secure partnerships with key rivals in the same space as Visa.
The Thai and Singaporean branches, for example, are powered by Mastercard.
Analysts responded tentatively to the news, with one financial publication in Asia pointing out that the collaboration rests on a potential re-emergence of trends towards global travel in the aftermath of coronavirus shutdowns.
YouTrip claims to be ready to take on a surge in demand once this period of lockdown is over and travelling resumes, press reports said.
Foreign travel spending for journeys abroad from Malaysia is predicted to surpass US$12bn, according to figures published by YouTrip.
Spokespeople for both firms pointed out the expected benefits of the new service.
Matt Wood, who serves as the head of digital partnerships for Visa in the Asia-Pacific region, emphasised that the new service will speed up the money transfer process.
“Together, we look forward to bringing faster, safer and more convenient digital payments to people across the region,” he said.
In a joint statement released by both Visa and YouTrip, the companies shared figures in an attempt to explain just how much potential the partnership holds.
“Leveraging Visa’s global network of 70 million merchant locations worldwide, YouTrip aims to enable South-east Asia travellers with access to cross-border payment solutions such as wholesale exchange rates and no foreign currency transaction fees in over 150 currencies,” they said.
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