Neu-Isenburg, 12/01/2017
Acquisition further strengthens AirPlus as a European provider of corporate credit cards
AirPlus International has announced today that they have signed an agreement to acquire BCC Corporate (BCCC), the Belgian Visa and MasterCard corporate card issuer, and subsidiary of Alpha Card Group.
For AirPlus, global provider of business travel payment solutions, this transaction forms part of its growth strategy in Europe based on virtual and mobile payment solutions.
AirPlus International expects to finalise this transaction subject to satisfaction of some conditions precedent in Q2 2017. Following the transaction BCCC’s customers will have access to AirPlus´s complete business travel payment solution. The entire customer value chain - from credit cards, central billing, travel insurance, virtual payment solutions to reporting tools and global servicing capability - will then be covered by one single provider.
With this transaction, BCCC’s national and multi-national customers who must deal with various rules and systems depending on where they operate, would gain access to the integrated AirPlus product and service suite.
It will also answer to the local customer requirements: corporate cards remain indeed the payment method of choice for Belgian corporate travellers.
Adding BCCC’s 100,000 corporate cards to the half million AirPlus issued corporate cards will contribute to the offering of a convenient, complete and easily scalable solution.
“Our industry is remodelling quickly in response to the recent legislation on interchange fees. The current patchwork of local rules and solutions is too complex: there is clearly a need for a global solution with standardized products and processes. Therefore, this agreement is particularly timely for our customers: it is the best way to help them conduct business efficiently all over Europe, by offering a comprehensive solution and a clear pricing model. We look forward to further positioning AirPlus as a leader on the European market with the talent that our BCC Corporate colleagues bring on board. This transaction will help us grow our walking card volume to 3.5 billion euros by 2020”, says Patrick W. Diemer, Chairman of the Board of AirPlus International.
Alpha Card and BCC Corporate’s CEO Mark Saevels also commented: “we are pleased to have formed this agreement with AirPlus, a long standing and respected partner of BCC Corporate and will be working closely with them to transition the BCC business by Q2 2017.”
Contact:
Anne Dreesen
AirPlus International
Phone: +49 (0) 61 02. 2 04 - 72 61
Email: communications@airplus.com