Payments company American Express launches Amex Passport, allowing cardholders to collect travel stamps as Non-Fungible Token on Ethereum Base to preserve travel memories.
American Express has officially launched a blockchain travel stamp service, allowing customers to collect and store digital mementos from international trips. Each travel stamp is issued as an ERC-721 non-fungible Token ( Non-Fungible Token ) on an Ethereum layer-2 Base, meeting the growing demand for digital travel memorabilia as physical passport stamps are disappearing.
Luke Gebb, Executive Vice President of Amex Digital Labs, said the best part of traveling is being able to relive past trips, and Amex Passport gives card members the opportunity to commemorate their journeys in a unique way. Each travel stamp Non-Fungible Token can be customized to highlight special experiences from the trip, including favorite attractions, memorable meals, hotels, or activities.
Only customers who own a U.S.-issued Amex consumer card linked to an online account are eligible to participate in the program. To ensure privacy, these Non Fungible Tokens are non-transferable and only show the country or region, stamp description, and date of receipt, while personal information and travel details will not be published on Base. BaseScan data shows that the Amex travel stamp smart contract was created 25 days ago.
Blockchain application trends in enterprise data storage
American Express’s initiative is the latest example of public blockchains helping businesses and consumers securely store data without the need for centralized servers. The trend is being widely adopted by large organizations, with the US Department of Commerce announcing last month that it would begin publishing economic data, including GDP data, on the blockchain.
Demand for new travel stamp solutions is growing, according to a recent Amex survey, with 73% of respondents wanting more ways to digitally commemorate their trips, and 56% saying they miss getting their passport stamped when they arrive in a new country. Amex travel stamps can be Chia on social media or saved to a photo album, with trips booked with Amex within the last two years automatically added to customers’ accounts.
The travel industry is seeing increased integration of crypto assets. Crypto-asset travel platform Travala integrated crypto payment options for 2.2 million hotels on Trivago in February.
Data from Travala in May showed that crypto users typically spend three times more on a hotel stay than the Medium and often stay longer to accommodate flexible working lifestyles.
According to Triple-A, 14% of crypto-asset transactions in 2024 will be spent on travel and accommodation, reflecting the growing trend of airlines accepting crypto-assets for booking tickets.
