Low cost carrier AirAsia this year celebrates a decade flying to China and to commemorate the milestone, the Malaysia based airlines has at long last struck a deal to accept UnionPay.
The carrier’s route network in the Middle Kingdom now extends to 16 destinations and over 350 flights a week and adoption of a service with the world’s third-largest market share of card transactions was always a case of not if, but when.
Adoption of UnionPay covers the entire AirAsia eco-system, so Chinese customers can book flights, make hotel reservations and more.
UnionPay will also support AirAsia’s BIG loyalty programme with Chinese Yuan purchases automatically converted into points later this year and a BIG-UnionPay co-branded card is likely to be launched this year.
"This partnership represents our commitment to the Chinese market that will allow more people in China to fly, boosting tourism between China and Southeast Asia and beyond.," says AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes.
"We are always looking for ways to make travel more accessible to the masses and there is no better partner than UnionPay in China."
