will relocate to each operating company's site.
November 7, 2023
JTB Corp.
JTB BUSINESS INNOVATORS Corp.
Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company, Limited
GMO Financial Gate, Inc.
JTB Corp. (Headquarters: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, President & Chief Executive Officer: Eijiro Yamakita , hereinafter referred to as JTB), JTB BUSINESS INNOVATORS Corp. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President & Chief Executive Officer: Yasushi Ueda, hereinafter referred to as JBI), Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company, Limited (Head Office: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President & Chief Executive Officer: Yukihiko Onishi, below: Sumitomo Mitsui Card), GMO Internet Group to develop face-to-face cashless payment platformGMO Financial Gate, Inc. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, President & Chief Executive Officer : Kentaro Sugiyama hereinafter referred to as GMO-FG) is a payment of Sumitomo Mitsui CardUtilizing the platform "stera", we will start promoting cashless payments and supporting digital transformation (hereinafter referred to as DX) for lodging and tourism businesses such as hotels and inns.
With the onset of post-corona and the rapid increase in the number of travelers from Japan and overseas, we will provide comfortable and new tourism experiences for both lodging and tourism operators and travelers through support for the introduction of cashless payments.
[Background and Purpose of this initiative]
In October 2022, border measures regarding entry and exit for entrants and returnees were significantly relaxed (*1), and the number of domestic travelers as well as visitors to Japan has been steadily increasing. With the Osaka-Kansai Expo scheduled to be held in 2025, the government has set a target of 60 million foreign visitors to Japan by 2030 (*2), and further increases are expected in the future.
On the other hand, there are concerns about a shortage of workers in the tourism industry. According to a survey by Teikoku Databank (*3), many companies in the "ryokan/hotel" and "restaurant" industries are strongly feeling the labor shortage due to the slow return of human resources who left their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic. Under these circumstances, lodging and tourism operators are making progress toward DX in order to improve convenience for travelers and improve productivity in the tourism industry.
JTB and JBI have been supporting the support of cashless payment by providing the C→REX card payment terminal to tourism operators, but credit cards, electronic money, and codesThere was an issue that we were not able to respond to the diversification of payment methods in Japan and overseas, such as payment and DCC payment, with an all-in-one system.
Sumitomo Mitsui Card's payment platform "stera" offers all kinds ofAll-in-one payment that supports payment methodsWe are developing services such as "Stera Terminal" terminals and "Stera Market" that allows users to download various necessary business applications in order to flexibly respond to the diverse needs of business operators. Utilizing these various solutions, we will comprehensively support DX and marketing in the tourism industry, which is suffering from labor shortages.
As a payment center operator that supports the face-to-face cashless market, GMO-FG has been working on DX for merchants through cashless promotion. In addition to providing payment terminals and serving as a bridge between payment processing businesses, we also provide cashless data and call center services. We provide a more convenient, safe, and secure cashless platform.
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (September 26, 2022) https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/000993077.pdf
- (*2) Cabinet Office (January 31, 2020) https://www.esri.cao.go.jp/jp/esri/seisaku_interview/interview2020_28.html
- (*3) About the Teikoku Databank survey https://www.tdb.co.jp/report/watching/press/p221110.html
[Specific Initiatives]
JTB and JBI have launched a Sumitomo Mitsui Card of services for lodging and tourism operators nationwide as a "Bulk Credit Merchant payment Service." We will introduce the payment platform "stera".
<What to achieve>
| (1) Compatible with various payment methods for travelers | We have installed the all-in-one payment terminal "stera terminal" and have installed →credit cards, electronic money, and DCC ( In addition to multi-currency payments), we will newly support code payments. By supporting a variety of payment methods, smooth accounting is realized. In September 2023, we will begin replacing the existing C→REX handsets and install approximately 9,000 devices nationwide. |
|---|---|
| (2) Responding to various payment scenarios for accommodation and tourist facilities | There are various types of products, such as automatic payment machines that are being introduced in accommodation facilities, mobile payment terminals that enable payment in guest rooms, and apps that meet the needs of non-contact and non-face-to-face payment. It supports payment scenes. |
| (3) Improving the efficiency of accounting for accommodation and tourism facilities | The "Transaction Inquiry Web Service" provided by GMO-FG allows you to inquire about card transactions handled by "stera" terminals on the web, and to handle amount change and cancellation processing on the web. As a result, transaction inquiries and inquiries for accommodation and tourism facilities will be greatly improved. |
| (4) Improving convenience for travelers through apps and supporting DX for lodging and tourism businesses | Through stera market, an app market dedicated to stera terminal, we will prepare an app package for lodging and tourism operators to improve convenience for travelers and support DX for businesses. |
In the future, we will continue to study various functions such as creating comfortable and new opportunities for tourism experiences for both accommodation and tourism operators and travelers, and supporting tourism operators in solving problems.
JTB Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Card, and GMO-FG will continue to contribute to the revitalization of the accommodation and tourism business through advanced cashless services through stera.
<Role of each company>
| JTB Corp. | Promoting the introduction of "stera" to accommodation and tourism businesses through the "Credit Bulk Merchant Payment Service" |
|---|---|
| JTB BUSINESS INNOVATORS Corp. | JTB Group's finance and payment service company, and the payment processing businessProduction department in |
| Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company, Limited | Cashless introduction support Provision of the "stera" platform |
| GMO Financial Gate, Inc. | Provision of payment related systems Payment processing company support |
About the payment platform "stera"
（URL：https://www.smbc-card.com/kamei/stera/index.jsp）"stera" is a service for businesses jointly built with Sumitomo Mitsui Card, GMO Payment Gateway Co., Ltd., GMO Financial Gate Co., Ltd., and Visa Worldwide Japan Co., Ltd. It is a payment platform.
【About the all-in-one payment terminal "Stera Terminal"】
（URL：https://www.smbc-card.com/kamei/stera/terminal/index.jsp）The all-in-one terminal "Stera Terminal" that makes up "Stera" is a single device that supports various payment methods such as credit cards, electronic money, and code paymentsIt is possible to respond to. In addition, we have developed an app marketplace "stera market" that has apps that can be used on terminals, and businesses can download and use business applications according to their needs.
【GMO Financial Gate】
(URL: https://gmo-fg.com/)GMO-FG has 24 years of Actual experience since its establishment in July 1999 as a payment processing company centered on credit and debit payments at face-to-face storesWe have built trust. As a joint use center that supports IC cards, we are committed to innovating the industry with economic rationality and technological advancement. In addition to CCT terminals (shared-use terminals) such as stationary and mobile devices, we also provide embedded payment services for automatic payment machines for hospitals and golf courses, and will contribute to society as a change leader in cashless payments.