Despegar becomes the first travel agency in LATAM to embrace crypto payments
One of the leading travel agencies in Latin America – Despegar – partnered with Binance Pay and Inswitch to enable customers to pay for travel packages in cryptocurrency.
First, the offer will only be available to customers in Argentina.
Despegar leads the way
Agreement, announced of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange – Binance, made Despegar the first online travel agency (OTA) in Latin America to accept digital assets as a means of payment. Customers will be able to pay for hotel stays, flights, rental cars and cruises in more than 70 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE), Litecoin (LTC) and Ripple (XRP).
Although the new option only applies to customers in Argentina, it may come to other countries in South America in the future.
Paula Cristi – general manager of Despegar for Argentina and Uruguay – said the firm has realized the benefits of the cryptocurrency industry, and argues that the offering will allow Argentines to “approach this universe in a friendly way.”
“We are proud to continue to add new options and payment options for more and more people to fulfill their dream of travel,” she added.
Maximiliano Hinz – Binance Director of Latam Southern Cone – claimed crypto’s main use is to facilitate payments. He is convinced that the sector is still in its early days, and believes that “adoption has a lot of room to grow.” The executive highlighted the partnership between Despegar and Binance Pay, describing it as an “important step” that can promote digital assets throughout society.
The payment method is supported by Inswitch – a global financial technology company responsible for converting digital currencies to fiat. CEO Ronald Alvarenga commented:
“We are excited about this new alliance with Despegar and Binance as it fulfills our commitment to democratize the payments industry and provide Despegar customers with yet another payment method as they embrace the world of cryptocurrency.”
Despegar is among the largest travel agencies in Latin America. It has over 4,500 employees and extends to over 20 countries in the region, including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Uruguay, Venezuela, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and many others.
Crypto is invading the travel industry
Cryptocurrencies have already interacted with well-known global hotel chains. The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts, which has locations in Bali, Phuket, the Himalayas, Rome and Amsterdam, merged with Coindirect in 2021 to allow payments in 40 different digital assets.
The Chedi Andermatt – a Swiss hotel in the Alps – followed, activates customers to settle their housing in BTC or ETH instead of fiat.
Novotel Bahrain Al Dana Resortlocated in the capital Manama, W Dubai – The Palm, and Palazzo Versace Dubai are also on the list.
It is worth noting that the largest hotel chain by the number of available rooms – Marriott International – has also dived into the crypto ecosystem. Unfortunately for the organization, it is among the many FTX creditors.
