Worldline & Visa team up to launch virtual card issuing solution

By Gloria Methri

Worldline has signed a strategic partnership with Visa to launch a new virtual card-issuing solution. This collaboration propels Worldline beyond payment processing and into direct card issuance.

The project will focus on the Online Travel Agency (OTA) market due to the high demand for this solution and Worldline’s strong portfolio in travel. By combining the parties’ acceptance networks and seamless payouts, the virtual card issuing solution will streamline OTAs’ cash flow.

OTAs currently represent 40% of the global travel market and are poised to play an increasingly influential role across all sectors, including airlines, hotels, packaged tours, rail, and cruises. For OTAs, virtual cards play an integral part in streamlining operational procedures, and this new partnership enables them to further optimise their business.

By choosing Visa as its international scheme partner, Worldline will provide OTAs with access to a B2B virtual card programme and enable them to pay their suppliers more quickly and securely.

The partnership connects Worldline’s Merchant Services capabilities with its innovative Financial Services Card issuing platform. The offering, with joint acceptance and issuing, further supports OTAs in the management and optimisation of cash flows while reducing operational frictions.

Guillaume Tournand, VP of Growth at Worldline Merchant Services, said, “We are delighted to announce this significant partnership with Visa, a globally influential and respected brand. It will transform the way online travel agencies handle payments by offering a unified solution that combines payment performance and cost-effectiveness. By leveraging our strong travel footprint, this initiative unlocks significant market expansion for Worldline, propelling us as the leading payment solution for travel agencies and driving sustainable revenue growth.”

Ed Chandler, Senior Vice President of Visa Commercial and Money Movement Solutions, also said, “At Visa, we obsess about working with partners to deliver innovative, secure, and reliable payment solutions. We are excited to partner with Worldline to streamline, unify and enhance how online travel agencies are paid and pay their suppliers seamlessly.”