Sabre Wallet

Q: What is Sabre Wallet and how do Travel Management Companies (TMCs) use it?

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A: Sabre Wallet is a digital platform that simplifies payment processes in the travel industry. TMCs use it to manage travel expenses like invoicing, payments, and reconciliation in one place. Here's how:

1. Centralized Payments: TMCs consolidate all travel expenses into Sabre Wallet, making it easier to handle payments for their clients.

2. Transaction Tracking: Sabre Wallet gives real-time updates on travel transactions, helping TMCs monitor expenses accurately.

3. Expense Control: TMCs set spending limits and enforce travel policies in Sabre Wallet, ensuring clients stay within budget and follow guidelines.

4. Security: Sabre Wallet prioritizes security, safeguarding payment data to prevent fraud and unauthorized transactions.

Overall, Sabre Wallet streamlines payment processes for TMCs, making travel management more efficient and providing clients with a smoother experience.

Q. How the money will flow between Suppliers (Airline, Car companies and hotel), TMC, and Travelers/Clients using Sabre wallet?

Answer:-

In the travel industry, the flow of money between suppliers (such as airlines, car rental companies, and hotels), Travel Management Companies (TMCs), and travelers using Sabre Wallet typically follows these steps:

1. Booking Process:

?? - Travelers or corporate clients submit travel requests to TMCs, specifying their preferences for flights, accommodations, and other travel services.

?? - TMCs use Sabre's global distribution system (GDS) to search for available options and make bookings on behalf of their clients. This includes selecting flights, reserving hotel rooms, and arranging for car rentals.

2. Payment Authorization:

?? - Once bookings are confirmed, TMCs initiate payment authorization through Sabre Wallet. This involves verifying the availability of funds and obtaining approval for the transaction.

3. Payment Settlement:

?? - After payment authorization is obtained, funds are transferred from the TMC's account to the respective suppliers' accounts. This settlement process may involve direct payments to airlines, hotels, and car rental companies through established financial channels.

4. Invoice Generation:

?? - Suppliers generate invoices detailing the services provided to the TMCs. These invoices may include itemized charges for flights, hotel stays, car rentals, and additional services.

5. Payment Reconciliation:

?? - TMCs reconcile invoices received from suppliers with the corresponding bookings and payments recorded in Sabre Wallet. This involves verifying the accuracy of charges, ensuring compliance with negotiated rates and contractual terms, and resolving any discrepancies.

6. Client Billing:

?? - TMCs bill their corporate clients or travelers for the travel services rendered. Billing may occur through Sabre Wallet, where TMCs generate invoices or statements reflecting the total cost of bookings, along with any service fees or markups.

7. Traveler Reimbursement:

?? - In cases where travelers incur out-of-pocket expenses during their trips, TMCs may facilitate reimbursement through Sabre Wallet. This involves processing expense claims, validating receipts, and reimbursing travelers for eligible expenses according to corporate travel policies.

Throughout this process, Sabre Wallet serves as a central platform for managing financial transactions, facilitating communication between TMCs and suppliers, and ensuring transparency and accountability in the flow of money within the travel ecosystem.

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Q. Drawback

The Sabre Wallet, like any system, has its drawbacks that may contribute to why many Travel Management Companies (TMCs) have not fully adopted it yet.

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1. Complexity: Sabre Wallet can be complex to implement and use. It requires integration with existing TMC systems and workflows, which can be time-consuming and costly. Some TMCs may find it challenging to navigate the technical requirements and train their staff adequately.

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2. Cost: Implementing and maintaining Sabre Wallet can be expensive. TMCs may need to invest in software licenses, infrastructure upgrades, and staff training. The ongoing operational costs, such as transaction fees and maintenance fees, can also add up over time, making it less appealing for some TMCs, especially smaller ones with limited budgets.

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3. Limited Adoption: While Sabre Wallet offers benefits such as streamlined payments and enhanced financial visibility, its adoption across the industry may still be limited. This can create challenges for TMCs that work with multiple suppliers and clients who may not be using Sabre Wallet themselves. In such cases, TMCs may need to manage multiple payment systems and reconcile transactions manually, reducing the efficiency gains promised by Sabre Wallet.

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4. Compatibility: Sabre Wallet may not be fully compatible with all suppliers' systems or payment methods. This can lead to compatibility issues and delays in payment processing, especially when working with suppliers who use different payment platforms or have unique invoicing requirements.

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5. Security Concerns: Like any financial system, Sabre Wallet must prioritize security to protect sensitive payment data and prevent fraud. TMCs may have concerns about the robustness of Sabre Wallet's security measures and its ability to safeguard against cyber threats and data breaches.

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Overall, while Sabre Wallet offers benefits such as centralized payment processing and improved financial management, its complexity, cost, limited adoption, compatibility issues, and security concerns may contribute to why many TMCs have not fully embraced it yet. TMCs must carefully evaluate these factors and weigh them against the potential benefits before deciding whether to adopt Sabre Wallet.

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Q. How Sabre Wallet is different from the Current Payment System used in TMC?

Sabre Wallet differs from traditional payment systems used in Travel Management Companies (TMCs) in several key ways:

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1. Centralization: Sabre Wallet offers a centralized platform for managing payments across multiple suppliers and transactions. Traditional payment systems used by TMCs often involve separate processes for different suppliers, such as airlines, hotels, and car rental companies. Sabre Wallet streamlines this process by providing a single interface for managing all payments.

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2. Integration: Sabre Wallet integrates with other systems used by TMCs, such as booking platforms and accounting software. This integration allows for seamless data flow between different systems, reducing manual data entry and streamlining the payment process. Traditional payment systems may lack this level of integration, leading to inefficiencies and potential errors in payment processing.

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3. Automation: Sabre Wallet automates many aspects of payment processing, including invoice generation, reconciliation, and reporting. This automation reduces the need for manual intervention and speeds up the payment cycle. Traditional payment systems often rely more heavily on manual processes, which can be time-consuming and prone to errors.

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4. Visibility: Sabre Wallet provides TMCs with greater visibility into their financial transactions and cash flow. Real-time reporting and analytics dashboards allow TMCs to track payments, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions. Traditional payment systems may offer limited visibility, with delayed or fragmented reporting that makes it difficult to monitor payment activity effectively.

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5. Security: Sabre Wallet incorporates robust security features to protect sensitive payment data and prevent fraud. Advanced encryption techniques, multi-factor authentication, and compliance with industry standards ensure that payments are secure. Traditional payment systems may lack these security features, leaving TMCs vulnerable to cyber threats and fraud.

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Overall, Sabre Wallet offers TMCs a modern, efficient, and secure payment solution that streamlines processes improves visibility, and enhances security compared to traditional payment systems.

KEY MESSAGES

- Purpose and Design: The Wallet is designed to securely store payment information and enhance agency management workflows.

- Compliance: It meets PCI standards with payment card data tokenized and viewable only to authorized users based on the EPR CCVIEW keyword setting.

- Payment Storage: Supports up to 200 payment forms, allowing for optional association by passenger, Use Type, and Trip Type for easy integration.

- Reservation Display: Expanded display formats offer targeted content based on associated payment information.

- Efficiency: Passenger-associated payment forms streamline processes, improving targeted Reservation Displays and related tasks.

- Additional Data: Optionally stores Cardholder Name, Corporate ID, and payment card approval codes (both system and manually entered).

- Content Validation: Ensures valid payment forms are entered, reducing the need for manual intervention later.

- Referencing: Eliminates the need for direct payment card viewership for most agents, allowing reference by line number in Wallet for various processes including PQ storage, Content Service Lodging (CSL), air ticketing, and EMD issuance.

- Integration: Interfaces with: ?

- Sabre Profiles (copy to PNR) with Use Type and Trip Type alignment ?

- Sabre Virtual Payments ?

- Content Services for Lodging ?

- Price Quote storage ?

- Ticket fulfillment ?

- EMD issuance ?

- IUR for payment card handoff to back-office

- Ticketing Logic: Utilizes current ticketing logic if multiple payment forms exist in the Wallet.

- Optional Edit: Offers MANTKTFOP option to enforce payment form referencing if multiple forms exist and a specific form was not used at ticketing or EMD issuance.

- Backoffice Integration: Provides a solution to pass payment card data to the back-office via IUR MX record. Note: As of June 25, 2024, payment card data in itineraries, invoices, or IUR remarks will be removed from Sabre at End Transact.

- Branch Sharing: Reservations can be shared across branches regardless of TJR PNAPNR keyword settings.

- Logging: Actions related to forms of payment can be tracked in history using HFOP.

- API Availability: Wallet and Passenger Association features are accessible via Sabre APIs (versions equal to or greater than those listed). For more details, visit Sabre Dev Studio (Sabre.com).