As part of a plan that seeks to adapt to the new forms of digital payment that are emerging in the world, the board of directors of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced the integration of digital currencies in its financial settlement systems.
As reported a statement from the Association, made up of 330 airlines from 120 countries that comprise more than 80% of world air traffic, The goal is to modernize transaction methods in the aviation industry.
«Digitization affects many aspects of our daily lives, including the currency we use. With the increasing use of digital currencies, it is imperative that the aviation industry’s financial settlement systems adapt to meet the needs of those who use our services,” said Muhammad Albakri, Senior Vice President of Financial Settlement and Distribution Services at IATA.
Add that the first currency to be introduced will be the digital renminbi (e-CNY or digital yuan)China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC). “e-CNY will be available in the IATA Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) at the end of 2024,” the letter indicates. This is the system that facilitates bank settlements of tickets and tickets between agencies and airlines from the same country or from several countries.
«China is one of the most advanced countries in the world in the adoption of digital currency (CBDC). Recognizing this trend, the IATA China Airlines Committee requested that the digital renminbi be included in the BSP. “This is an important advance that IATA approved, making room for the new digital currency from the end of the year,” Albakri noted.
He adds that with this measure they intend to adapt to changing payment preferences of airlines and their customerstaking advantage of “one of the most progressive markets in digital terms in the world.”
At the heart of the integration of the digital renminbi and all other payment systems is the need to serve the customer and adapt to their behavioral changes in payment methods. Payment must be fluid. The customer should not feel frustrated by not having the payment method of their choice available. Airlines should also not miss the opportunity to get proper value from their ticket sales.
Muhammad Albakri, Senior Vice President IATA.
IATA’s goal is to use the experience they gain with the digital yuan to then offer other CBDCs in their settlement systems. This, depending on the needs and requirements of the industry.
Since July of this year, they added the Offshore Renminbi (the international physical yuan) to the Foreign Exchange Clearing Service, in the quest to simplify billing and payment between airlines and travel agencies.
Advances in the digital yuan continue
The integration of the digital yuan to the International Air Transport Association is known at the same time that the Chinese company Huawei announces that its new operating system, called HarmonyOS NEXT, also will integrate payments with the digital yuan.
The company aims to reach a user base of more than 1 billion by launching the third largest operating system in the world, after Android and iOS. Development of HarmonyOS began after the US government imposed restrictions on Huawei in 2019, which has led it to innovate outside the Google ecosystem.
Now, by partnering with the Chinese government, Huawei is making it possible for users to access CBDC directly through their devices. This means that users can make payments on Huawei devices without having to download or open an app.
As CriptoNoticias has reported, China’s digital yuan has become the most developed CBDC in the world. Although there has not been an official launch so far, the tests with the digital currency not only already cover all the provinces of the country, but have been included in various areas including payments in businesses, the payment of salaries and banking services.
However, given the rejection that it seems to have had among a large part of the population, the Chinese government’s strategy heads towards the internationalization of the CBDC. Something that has been realized after using e-CNY to make payments for the marketing of oil and enabling its use in services of the British bank HSBC. A plan that takes a new step with the upcoming integration of the digital yuan into airline payment systems.
