PayPal teams up with United Airlines and Amex to lock up primary wallet status

The news: PayPal added two new integrations to streamline payments and app accessibility.

PayPal teamed up with United Airlines to offer in-flight QR code payments.

• The solution, which works offline, lets PayPal app users pay for in-flight snacks and services with a PayPal QR code, which can be scanned by flight attendants, per a press release. The offering is launching in Chicago with a broader rollout by the end of the year.
• The solution opens another in-person payments use case for PayPal and can also provide a simpler alternative to in-flight card payments, which can require entering a PIN. With air travel gradually recovering—United said flight searches for holiday travel are up 16% compared with 2019—PayPal’s solution can help sustain payments volume growth.

American Express customers can add their cards to PayPal within the Amex app.

• Customers just have to press a button in the Amex app to connect their card, per American Banker. Previously, Amex customers could only connect their cards by inputting their card details on the PayPal app or website.
• The integration helps streamline PayPal’s card onboarding process for Amex users—potentially making these customers more likely to use PayPal. It also builds on PayPal’s ties with the issuer: Amex app users can split payments among friends using PayPal or Venmo, and they can also receive funds from PayPal or Venmo users as an Amex statement credit.
• Making card onboarding easier lets customers take advantage of these perks, which can help improve the customer experience and increase volume for both PayPal and Amex.

The bigger picture: PayPal has been expanding its capabilities to keep customers tied to its platform and attract new users.

Last month, PayPal launched a revamped app with new offerings like a savings account, expanded bill pay support, a shopping hub, and a crowdsourced fundraising platform. And it’s also reportedly exploring a number of new integrations—like a stock-trading feature—on top of the crypto capabilities it introduced. Combined, PayPal’s recent integrations and solutions can help it attract new users and drive app engagement and payments volume—helping it achieve primary wallet status.

Related Content: Interested in what else PayPal’s been up to? Check out this article, where we explore the wallet’s latest integration with Honey, its digital promotions platform, and how this helps drive more payments volume and aids its retail push.