Qantas has forged an innovative partnership with Mastercard that will allow its frequent flyers to do more – with cutting-edge chip-enabled membership cards.
The new innovative Qantas Frequent Flyer card, which will be available for Australia-based members from the third quarter of this year, will have the ability to double up as a prepaid cash card, called Qantas CashTM, enabling members to load up to nine different currencies on the card that can be used for shopping at 35 million locations around the world where Mastercard is accepted and will also provide members the opportunity to earn extra points on eligible transactions. The card can also be used to withdraw cash from more than 2.1 million ATM machines globally. Further details of the new card will be released closer to its launch.
The card and all transactions are fully protected by Mastercard’s Zero Liability, including a PIN and signature for verification.
These new cash features will be in addition to the other existing Frequent Flyer card functions, such as smart check-in that the carrier rolled out in 2011 (see story here) and using the card as a boarding pass. Thus far, these features were only available for Silver, Gold and Platinum card holders but will now be expanded to Bronze card holders as well.
“The Qantas Cash feature will tap into the rapidly expanding area of electronic payments as people shift from cash to cards, and let members earn points from these transactions,” said Lesley Grant, chief executive of Qantas Loyalty.
For more information, visit www.qantas.com.au
Alisha Haridasani
