Travel tech company Yanolja said on March 13 it will strengthen global cooperation with Citi to innovate payments in the travel industry, at the Citi Asia Digital Leaders Summit 2026 held from March 11 to 13 at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, southern China.

The cooperation centres on expanding a partnership between Yanolja and Citibank Korea that has continued since 2021 to Citi's global network. The two companies plan broad cooperation to build a 'next-generation integrated payment and settlement system' optimised for the global travel industry.

The companies will combine Yanolja's extensive travel infrastructure and solution technology with Citi's global financial network. They plan to build a next-generation payment system around four key tasks: improving the efficiency and transparency of global B2B settlement; linking API-based automated settlement and payment systems; AI-based financial risk management; and expanding global cash management and payment infrastructure. The plan is to automate complex global payment processes to provide travel businesses worldwide with a more stable and cost-efficient operating environment.

Gunjan Kalra (군잔 칼라), head of commercial banking for Japan, North Asia and Australia (JANA) and South Asia at Citi, said, "As companies' global expansion rapidly diversifies across regions, it is becoming more important for customers entering new markets to maintain consistent operating systems." Kalra said, "This cooperation is a key example that shows how Citi supports the global growth strategies of mid-sized companies worldwide, and the importance of an integrated global payment infrastructure that supports both the stability and speed of international growth."

Su-jin Lee (이수진), group co-CEO of Yanolja, said, "Cooperation with Citi is an important strategic milestone to build next-generation payment infrastructure specialised for the global travel industry." Lee said, "By combining Yanolja's travel-focused SaaS solutions and platform capabilities with Citi's global financial infrastructure, we will lead the digital transformation of the travel industry and payment innovation."