Collinson launches Domestic Lounge Experience “Priority PassTM Access India” in partnership with Pine Labs

India, 8 February 2022: Today, Priority Pass, the world’s leading airport lounge and experiences programme owned and operated by Collinson, has announced a new domestic lounge experience in India – “Priority PassTM Access India”. Launched through a strategic partnership with Pine Labs, a leading merchant commerce platform, the programme enables brands to reward their customers with seamless access to Priority Pass’s extensive lounge network in India, as well as the largest lounge network globally, through one single provider.

Priority PassTM Access India is an extension of Priority Pass, which provides discerning frequent travellers access to over 1,300 lounges and airport experiences – resulting in travellers being able to indulge in at least one experience at 90 of the top 100 airports globally.

Through the launch of Priority PassTM Access India, the enhanced programme stands alone in its ability to offer Indian cardholders access to lounges both domestically within India and internationally via their payment card.

Eligible payment cardholders in India can now enjoy access to 50 premium lounges and airport experiences located across all major cities in India, simply by tapping or swiping their payment card on Pine Labs’ point of sale (POS) terminals. The existing lounge coverage will continue to expand with additional airport lounges and lounge experiences being added to the domestic network over the coming months.

The launch of Priority PassTM Access India ensures travellers are better served when travelling domestically during the pandemic. Alongside the increased demand for domestic travel, research* by Collinson also revealed over three quarters of respondents (79%) believe travel will feel ‘more stressful’ than before the pandemic, while 87% of travellers** will want access to socially-distanced spaces such as a lounge experiences to ‘de-stress’ and ‘relax away from the crowds’.

Priyanka Lakhani, Senior Vice President, Commercial EMEA at Collinson said, “Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, India remains one of the world’s busiest domestic travel hubs. With the ‘new normal’ of travel being more stressful than before, travellers in India are seeking a hassle-free experience where they feel safe and secure. Our partnership with Pine Labs to launch Priority PassTM Access India enables us to respond to this growing need – offering a seamless solution for our clients to reward their customers with memorable, domestic and international experiences in the most frequently traversed locations.”

Kush Mehra, Chief Business Officer, Pine Labs, added: “At Pine Labs, we are constantly innovating our technology solutions to cater to the evolving needs of our partners and provide simplified solutions for their customers. We are all aware of how stressful travelling can be, especially during current times. We are excited to partner with Collinson to launch Priority PassTM Access India, to ensure a seamless experience for Indian travellers.”

About Collinson

Collinson is a global leader in the provision of traveller experiences including airport lounge access and medical and security assistance and travel medical services. Collinson’s traveller experiences include the world’s leading airport lounge and experiences programme, Priority Pass, as well as travel insurance, identity assistance, flight delay, international health and travel risk management solutions.

Collinson has over 2,000 employees operating out of 17 locations globally, all working to deliver a broad range of traveller experiences that ensure the safety, welfare and comfort of 55 million people as they travel for business and leisure around the world. Its travel medical and security assistance business unit has more than 55 years’ experience in the delivery of international medical assistance and emergency care, including the handling of pandemics such as Ebola, Zika and the coronavirus. Last year alone, Collinson responded to over 95,000 emergency calls, managed over 40,000 medical cases and conducted over 3,000 aero-medical evacuations across the 170 countries it serves. We work with clients including American Express, Cathay Pacific, CBA, Mastercard, UnionPay and Visa.

With a rich history of connecting different members of the travel, financial services and loyalty ecosystem together, and recognising the central role that travel plays to global economies, Collinson continues to leverage its unique position in light of the pandemic, working to help keep brands front of mind, raise traveller confidence and ultimately support global travel’s long-term recovery.

About Priority Pass

Priority Pass is the original and market-leading airport experiences programme operated by Collinson. It provides discerning frequent travellers access to over 1,300 lounges and airport experiences in over 650 airports across 148 locations, including a growing number of airport dining and spa offerings worldwide that can be accessed in the same way as lounges. Using the Priority Pass app for iOS and Android, members can quickly and easily discover locations welcoming Priority Pass, instantly check their visit entitlement and use their Digital Membership Card to access airport lounges and experiences.

About Pine Labs

A leading merchant commerce platform, Pine Labs serves prominent large, mid-sized and small merchants across India and Southeast Asia. The company's leading cloud-based software platform enables it to offer a wide range of payment acceptance and merchant commerce solutions including enterprise automation systems such as inventory management and customer relationship management. Its stored value platform includes issuing, processing, and distributing digital gift cards for corporate customers around the world. In April 2021, Pine Labs acquired Fave, a consumer fintech platform that provides a smart payment app to the smart generation of consumers looking to pay and save. Fave is currently available in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia with a planned roll-out in India in the near term. Incorporated in Singapore, Pine Labs' key investors include Sequoia India, Actis Capital, Temasek, PayPal and Mastercard. To know more, please visit www.pinelabs.com

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