Japan Airlines has become the first airline to offer customers the opportunity to pay in the currency of their choice through a partnership with Amadeus’ Outpayce division.

Payments platform Outpayce has struck a deal with global banking giant HSBC to make forex rates available to airlines through its FX Box Multi Currency Pricing (MCP) solution.

Amadeus hopes this will address issues that see travellers switch airlines when they are not offered payments options in their native currencies.

More than a third of airlines that responded to a recent Amadeus survey said they plan to offer fares in multiple currencies within the next twelve months.

Damian Alonso, head of commercial and partnerships at Outpayce, said: “We are thrilled to announce our partnership with HSBC.

“By offering consumers the option to pay in their preferred currency and ensuring there are no hidden fees, we hope to make shopping for travel easier and more enjoyable.

“We know travellers welcome this with our research showing that nine-in-every-ten travellers would be more likely to choose one airline over another if given the option to pay in their preferred currency.”

FX Box MCP has extended its coverage to over 170 currencies, enabling airlines to price their fares based on the needs of each individual traveller.

If the customer chooses to pay in their own currency, a FX transaction occurs behind the scenes based on HSBC’s rates with full reconciliation to the airline’s revenue accounting systems.

Amadeus said this is an alternative for travellers who would otherwise rely on their own card-issuing bank to undertake this service on an ‘after-the-fact’ basis.

“Typically, travellers only realise how much such conversions have cost when they check their bank statement,” said the GDS and aviation technology developer.

Gregory Edwards, global head of transactional FX at HSBC, said: “For global merchants such as airlines with significant cross-border sales, it’s really important to them to offer prices in the local currency of their customers.

“Outpayce’s FX Box solution makes it much easier to understand how much you’re paying for an air fare, enabling airlines to take control of the entire FX experience on their websites. With our globally competitive rates, airlines are ready to go.”