UATP experiencing very large growth as it continues to implement plenty of new customers .
“ All our lines of business are growing in double digits , profitability is 30-40 %, so we are expecting prosperity ,” Ralph says . “ We just went through a pandemic and hopefully we ’ ve learned some lessons from that , but there are events like that which we can ’ t control that we just have to manage in our business .”
UATP believes that its most significant growth opportunity currently is making the most of its geographic markets . As Ralph explains , the organisation wants to open up a market in India and the continent of Africa similar to its business in the People ’ s Republic of China .
“ We opened up China for UATP almost 17 years ago and have now built out the infrastructure there , having recruited partners ,” he says . “ We have airlines that issue UATP accounts and almost every airline in China accepts UATP as a form of payment . Now , we want to do the same thing with India . Likewise , the continent of Africa is underserved in our opinion and we have made very good progress . “ We also want to get into new nontravel B2B verticals , like big-box retailers and anyone that could benefit from a low cost closed-loop payment network . We ’ re moving forward and I anticipate some announcements next year .”
The company is also seeking to capitalise on trends like AI to drive its business even further forward . However , Ralph is quick to note that he does not want to sacrifice the human element of UATP ’ s offerings .
“ We are seeing more automation , and that includes the use of AI , in the sector . I think the way to win there is to be able to provide those services , but still maintain high quality services ,” he says . “ If you take out the human element , you better be sure that everything is covered so that people don ’ t get frustrated with your product or the interaction .
“ There needs to be a layer of human touch that can be guided by AI . If you just throw everything to AI , you could wind up with some unhappy customers .”
As a whole , UATP is committed to enhancing its entire portfolio to accelerate its growth , in addition to optimising services for customers to remove friction .
“ We solve payment related problems for customers and meet their payment needs from a strategic and technology standpoint ,” Ralph says . “ When a customer says , ‘ Hey , can you do this ?’ We go back and build it . The thing that makes us unique is that we won ’ t lie to them . If we can ’ t do it , we ’ ll tell them . Or if we don ’ t see the total value for that customer , we might find a different way to do it .
“ We ’ re always looking at ways to make the experience better for the customer , the traveller , and then enhancing our platform .” uatp . com 13