Lufthansa AirPlus

Lufthansa AirPlus
Name	Lufthansa AirPlus
Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Aviation services
Founded	1986
Headquarters	Cologne, Germany
Area served	Worldwide
Parent	Lufthansa Group

Lufthansa AirPlus

Lufthansa AirPlus is a corporate travel payment and expense management provider established as a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. It operates in the business travel market alongside multinational firms such as American Express Global Business Travel, BCD Group, CWT, SAP Concur, and Egencia, serving clients across Europe, North America, Asia, Africa, and Australia. The company integrates with corporate procurement and travel platforms used by organizations like Siemens, Bayer, Deutsche Bank, Allianz, and Volkswagen.

Overview

Lufthansa AirPlus offers corporate card programs, invoice solutions, and reporting tools that compete with services from Mastercard, Visa, Diners Club, JCB, and UnionPay. The firm’s products interface with travel management systems developed by Amadeus, Sabre Corporation, and Travelport and connect to booking platforms used by airlines including Lufthansa, British Airways, Air France–KLM, Iberia, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and Emirates. Financial clearing and settlement link AirPlus with banking institutions such as Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, HSBC, Barclays, and BNP Paribas and with payment processors like Worldline and Adyen.

History

Founded in 1986, AirPlus began amid aviation expansion involving carriers such as Pan Am, TWA, and Cathay Pacific. Early partnerships aligned AirPlus with airline distribution initiatives influenced by International Air Transport Association policies and with corporate travel trends shaped after events like the 1973 oil crisis and the deregulation episodes seen in United States airline deregulation. Over time the company expanded alongside the consolidation of carriers into groups like Oneworld, SkyTeam, and the Star Alliance. Strategic developments occurred during periods marked by incidents such as the September 11 attacks and the 2008 global financial crisis, which altered corporate travel demand and prompted integration with expense management vendors like Concur Technologies (later SAP Concur).

Services and Products

AirPlus markets corporate payment solutions including centralized billing, virtual cards, and charge cards that parallel offerings from Mastercard Corporate, Visa Business, and American Express. The company provides travel invoice management, reconciliation services, and spend analytics comparable to services by Certify and Expensify. AirPlus supports reporting standards and tax compliance across jurisdictions influenced by directives from institutions such as the European Commission, Bundesbank, and tax authorities in countries including Germany, France, United Kingdom, and United States. It offers travel risk modules analogous to products by International SOS and Control Risks for duty-of-care obligations during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters related to events including the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption.

Membership and Eligibility

Corporate clients include multinationals, small and medium enterprises, and public institutions subject to procurement rules like those applied by European Union agencies and by governments such as United Kingdom, United States, and Germany. Enrollment processes intersect with compliance frameworks like General Data Protection Regulation and anti-money laundering measures influenced by the Financial Action Task Force. Eligibility criteria mirror those used by travel management firms such as BCD Travel and Carlson Wagonlit Travel for corporate account creation, credit assessment with agencies like Dun & Bradstreet, and contractual arrangements used by enterprises like Siemens Energy and BASF.

Corporate Structure and Partnerships

As a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group, AirPlus partners with airline subsidiaries including Eurowings and SWISS, and with global distribution and technology vendors like Amadeus IT Group, Sabre, and Travelport. Strategic alliances and commercial arrangements extend to banks and card networks including Mastercard Incorporated, Visa Inc., and Diners Club International. The company has historically worked with travel management companies such as HRG (now part of American Express Global Business Travel) and corporate clients like BMW, Daimler, RWE, and ThyssenKrupp for tailored payment and reporting solutions.

Technology and Security

AirPlus implements payment and data interfaces that conform to standards set by organizations such as the PCI Security Standards Council and integrates with identity and access solutions used by firms like Microsoft and Oracle. Security measures align with protocols applied by cloud providers including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform, and with encryption standards used in banking by institutions such as SWIFT and Europay. Fraud prevention and cybersecurity practices draw on frameworks from ENISA and techniques used by enterprises like SAP and Cisco Systems to mitigate threats associated with events like SWIFT banking heists and large-scale breaches seen at companies like Equifax.

Controversies and Regulatory Issues

AirPlus, like other corporate payment providers such as American Express and Mastercard, operates within regulatory environments shaped by authorities including the European Central Bank, Bundesnetzagentur, and national financial supervisors. Industry-wide controversies affecting payment providers include disputes over interchange fees discussed in cases before the European Court of Justice and investigations similar to inquiries by national competition authorities in Germany and France. Data protection concerns relate to rulings under the Court of Justice of the European Union and enforcement of GDPR by regulators such as the Bundesdatenschutzbeauftragter. Broader travel-sector regulatory issues have involved bodies like IATA, ICAO, and national aviation authorities such as the Federal Aviation Administration and European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

Category:Financial services companies Category:Lufthansa Group