The iconic Eiffel tower in Paris, France, is the most visited paid-for monument in the world with a heritage spanning over 130 years. Of the 6 million visitors welcomed to the attraction in 2019, 75% were international visitors, and revenues from ticketing equaled € 87.201M[1].

Planet successfully won the business with SETE for the online currency conversion service launched with the support of Caisse d’Epargne Ile de France, part of BPCE Group, in partnership with Lyra Network online payment solution. International visitors will now have the option to buy their tickets online in the currency of their choice.

The launch of this solution to a prestigious customer on a large scale, is a strategic online payments win for Planet in France, and Europe (example transaction pictured below).

“This innovative e-DCC launch is opening doors to future business with our existing currency conversion clients, as well as new potential customers across the hospitality, travel and retail industries”, commented Patrice Fortin, Payment Director France at Planet. Thanks to Planet’s international payments expertise, and connections to leading payment methods and card schemes, we have developed a solution which serves the needs of international spenders. Tourist have the choice to pay in the method they want to use and in their preferred currency, while the merchant can grow revenue from their payments.”

Last year, the European B2C e-commerce market was estimated to be worth at € 620BN Euros. This presents a huge growing opportunity for merchants to offer new online currency conversion services to their customers. In 2019, 10 million British tourists visited France. The UK government’s decision to leave the European Union means that merchants have a new opportunity to target more consumers, and earn additional revenue through currency conversion and VAT refund payment services.

“We are starting preparations now to welcome back tourists to Paris. Enabling a smooth and seamless payment process for our customers is important to our overall brand experience. We are pleased to be working with Planet due to their experience of working with our target customer base as an established revenue generating payments partner.” Michel Balsan, SETE CFO.

[1] https://sete.toureiffel.paris/sites/default/files/downloads/2020-09/2019_RA%20FR_EN_1.PDF