When we last spoke with Kristian Gjerding, CEO of CellPoint Digital, in 2022, the payments landscape was already undergoing profound change. Payment orchestration was emerging as a critical strategy for travel brands. Merchants looking to simplify complex ecosystems, cut costs, and unlock new revenue streams. Since then, the pace of change has only accelerated.
In this follow-up conversation, we revisit Gjerding’s vision for payment orchestration. We discuss how airlines and travel companies are rethinking payments in light of modern retailing models like Offer-Order-Settle-Deliver (OOSD). But also the growing impact of cross-border transactions, and the myths that still surround orchestration. Gjerding also shares recent client success stories that highlight how payment orchestration is no longer just a back-end efficiency tool. But a driver of strategic growth.
This interview offers an inside look at how CellPoint Digital is helping global brands transform payments from a cost center into a profit-generating asset. More importantly, why the next phase of payment orchestration will be even more important for the future of travel and mobility.
Since our last chat in 2022, how has your vision for payment orchestration evolved?
Our vision for payment orchestration is that it remains the clearest path to turning payments from a cost center into a strategic asset and profit center. It is still the best way to simplify the complexities associated with legacy systems and multiple payment providers and drive down the cost of payments.
However, as we prepare to unveil our new platform in September, we are thinking differently about how payment orchestration creates value. We believe the process of transforming payments into a strategic and profit-generating asset rests on three pillars:
- Operational: Giving businesses more control over their payment ecosystems, reducing overhead, and improving agility and efficiency.
- Customer Experience: Delivering convenient, personalised, and uninterrupted payment experiences that build customer loyalty and satisfaction.
- Financial: Lowering transaction costs, improving payment acceptance rates, and creating new revenue streams through new payment models.
As airlines and travel brands move toward a modern retailing approach exemplified by the Offer-Order-Settle-Deliver (OOSD) model, having a payment solution that is built on these value creation pillars will be a critical advantage. Payment orchestration is that solution.
You spoke about unlocking revenue, not just saving costs. Any new success stories?
While we can’t cite our partners by name, we have achieved significant successes since our last conversation. One of our clients, a Tier 1 global airline processing $2.4 billion annually, utilised our platform to optimise its payment page and consolidate its storefront. That is resulting in $158 million in revenue ROI, a 6.6% increase in payment-derived revenue.
In a different example, a Tier 3 airline utilised our platform to introduce foreign exchange services, APMs, and intelligent routing. They achieved over $19M in new revenue, representing a 2.4% uplift. These examples show how orchestration, smart routing, and front-end optimisation translate into top-line growth. As average order values increase under OOSD, the revenue impact from optimised high-volume payment processing will become even more pronounced.
What’s changed in the cross-border payments landscape since 2022?
For one thing, it continues to expand. The global cross-border payments industry is projected to reach $290 trillion by 2030, according to EY. It’s growing faster in some regions than others as well. Visa recently reported that cross-border transactions in the Latin American (LatAm) region increased by 25% compared to the same period last year.
We have also seen the emergence of various international initiatives, including Project Nexus from the Bank for International Settlements. It connects payment systems through APIs, designed to make more inclusive and efficient cross-border transactions.
However, cross-border transactions continue to account for a significant percentage of revenue for global travel brands including airlines. The costs associated with inefficient transaction routing and currency exchange management remain an area where payment orchestration can have a major impact. Our payment orchestration platform, for example, uses AI and machine learning to continuously optimise cross-border transaction routing. It is improving approval rates and reducing transaction costs in real-time.
How are your travel and mobility clients’ needs shifting right now?
The shift to OOSD is forcing travel brands to re-evaluate legacy systems and payment infrastructure. As airlines and travel brands prepare for this transition, they are pursuing new technologies to enhance the efficiency of their retailing processes. The ability to optimise payment operations and support dynamic pricing and tailored offers through payment orchestration will help travel companies capture more revenue from retailing strategies.
What’s one big myth about payment orchestration you’d like to bust?
A common misconception is that implementing payment orchestration requires a complete overhaul of existing infrastructure. That is simply not true. For example, our platform was developed for zero-downtime deployment. It was built on a modular architecture that supports gradual integration based on immediate priorities and future goals.
It’s designed to work with both legacy and next-generation systems, while also maintaining relationships with third-party payment providers. It uses configurable rules engine to intelligently manage how payment options are presented to passengers. Including combined payments like points and cash, while also supporting multi-payer transactions, intelligent refund hierarchies, and provider-specific payout logic.
These features provide maximum flexibility with minimal integration requirements. In practice, that means payment orchestration can be introduced without disruption, scaled at your pace, and adapted as your business needs change. With CellPoint Digital, you can modernise payments without having to rebuild them from the ground up.
Kristian Gjerding – Bio
As founder and Chief Executive Officer of CellPoint Digital, Kristian Gjerding sets the strategic direction for the company as it evolves to become the premier payment orchestration platform for travel merchants across the globe. In this role, he has shaped and help build one of the most effective, intelligent digital commerce and payment solutions for the travel industry. It is designed to help travel merchants simplify their systems, unify their customer experience and boost their digital transactions across website, mobile web and mobile apps.
For more than a decade prior to founding CellPoint Digital, Gjerding shaped the payments ecosystem by helping global merchants, payments and trade organisations establish best practices and standards around contactless payments, mobile payments and remote payments. His experience in this field includes current and past advisory roles with the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Mobey Forum, National Retail Federation and others. Gjerding previously served in senior executive roles responsible for technology, wireless and mobile payments solutions at StorageTek, Sun Microsystems, Amdahl, Network Appliance and OIS.
