Sabre, Conferma Pay and Mastercard boost travel economy with virtual cards

Saber Corporation (NASDAQ: SABR), a leading provider of software and technology powering the global travel industry, and Conferma Pay, a global financial technology firm specializing in payment technology, today announced a new partnership with Mastercard to accelerate the use of virtual cards for business-to-business (B2B) travel payments.

Today's announcement builds on Saber's acquisition of Conferma Pay in August 2022. The collaboration with Mastercard is the next step in advancing Saber's goal of creating an open and independent travel payment ecosystem.

Digitizing virtual card travel payments helps address historical challenges associated with B2B corporate and leisure travel payments. Securely generated one-time card numbers provide a link between the reservation and associated payments to third-party providers. Therefore, travel buyers and providers can easily track and reconcile payments, as well as benefit from flexible pricing, financing options, and enhanced security through card payment guarantees.

“The payments industry is in the midst of a revolution and there is a greater need for travel companies to better manage the entire payment experience,” said Roshan Mendis, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Saber Travel Solutions. “Businesses in the travel space, including travel management companies, travel agencies, corporations, issuers, and technology partners, need sophisticated solutions and seamless connections. Saber is taking strategic steps to meet the needs of our industry, beginning with the acquisition of Conferma Pay. Now, the new partnership with Mastercard will help Conferma Pay build new and enhanced digital capabilities into virtual cards, transforming the payment experience for issuers."

As part of the agreement, Mastercard has agreed to make a minority investment in Conferma Pay, which will continue to operate independently and serve the entire travel industry and beyond. Mastercard's investment in Conferma Pay is subject to customary closing conditions.

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

Conferma Pay connects issuers with over 700 travel management companies, all major global distribution systems and over 100 online booking tools. Conferma Pay is fully integrated with all major card schemes and serves more than 50 banking partners, who issue virtual cards generated by Conferma Pay in nearly 100 currencies.

“We have already made significant strides in the B2B travel space through the partnership with Sabre,” said Martin Cowley, interim CEO of Conferma Pay. “We are excited about the new investments. This, combined with our strong existing relationships, will enable Conferma Pay to leverage our global footprint and be at the forefront of industry challenges and opportunities."

Saber Virtual Payments will continue to offer Conferma Pay services, with increased capabilities that help travel buyers, agencies and corporations better meet the needs of travel customers. Saber Virtual Payments is a unique, secure, automated and integrated end-to-end payment solution designed to simplify and add value to the transactions that TMCs, OTAs, travel agencies, corporations and travel providers do every day. Saber Virtual Payments takes all the capabilities of Conferma Pay and its network of issuers and combines them with seamless integration across all Saber products for travel buyers, agencies and connected corporations.