Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG) has invested $US5 million (more than AU$7 million) in Boston-based travel technology company Blockskye as it looks to strengthen its corporate travel payments capability and accelerate innovation across its FCM technology ecosystem.
The strategic investment gives Flight Centre Travel Group’s corporate arm, FCM, early access to Blockskye’s blockchain-based payments platform, which is designed to streamline payment processes, improve transparency and provide enterprise clients with real-time financial visibility.
The move also gives FLT exposure to Blockskye’s future commercial growth as the payments technology company expands its presence in the corporate travel sector.
FLT Corporate chief executive officer Chris Galanty said the investment aligned with the company’s strategy of backing technology that enhances the customer experience and strengthens relationships with corporate clients.
“This investment provides FCM with access to emerging payment technology that solves some of the corporate card and expense management challenges that corporate travellers typically encounter,” Galanty said.
“Once embedded in our technology suite, it has the potential to improve efficiency, reduce costs and enhance transparency for our corporate clients.
“The structure of this investment also gives FLT meaningful exposure to Blockskye’s commercial trajectory as it scales, with protections appropriate to an early-stage investment.”
Blockskye’s technology aims to reduce reliance on traditional payment methods, including credit cards, while enabling automated reconciliation and more advanced reporting capabilities for travel programs.
The company already counts Fortune 100 companies among its client base, along with several major enterprise-level customers in the United States.
Integration of Blockskye functionality
As part of the broader strategy, FCM will integrate Blockskye’s payment functionality into its proprietary technology suite over the medium term, creating a more seamless end-to-end travel management experience for corporate customers.
FCM will also partner with KAYAK for Business and Blockskye on a new enterprise-focused offering aimed at growing market share in the US corporate travel sector.
The new platform will combine FCM’s global servicing infrastructure and supplier network with KAYAK for Business’ booking technology and direct airline marketplace, alongside Blockskye’s payments and reconciliation capability.
According to FLT, the integrated approach is designed to deliver a more connected customer experience spanning booking, payment, reporting and traveller servicing.
The investment forms part of Flight Centre Travel Group’s wider push into technology and automation across its corporate travel business.
That includes the rollout of Sam, FCM’s proprietary AI-enabled platform, which is scheduled to launch globally from next month.
Sam has been developed to provide travellers and travel managers with improved data-driven insights and automation, while supporting policy compliance and delivering a more streamlined travel experience.
FLT said the platform combines proprietary AI technology with human support to deliver enterprise-grade accuracy and oversight across the travel lifecycle.
The company said Sam has been built specifically for managed travel programs, with configurable guardrails aligned to corporate travel policies and compliance requirements.
