Tag: MAPS.ME

Maps.me Announces New Cashback Partnership with Booking.com

Leading Offline Mapping Platform Launches Exciting New Reward Program

Maps.me has announced a new partnership with Booking.com that will enable users to earn cashback rewards in their Maps.me digital wallet. Users of the world’s most popular offline mapping tool will be able to earn up to 10% cashback when booking travel through a special integration of leading digital travel platform Booking.com in the Maps.me app.

With the launch of MAPS Rewards, users will be able to earn cashback in US dollars to their Maps.me digital wallet when they book accommodation with Booking.com in the Maps.me app. Initially, users who hold 30 MAPS Rewards will receive 3% cashback on their stayed reservations with Booking.com. But, as their holdings of MAPS Rewards increase to 100 or 300, they will unlock cashback rates of up to 7% and then up to 10%, respectively.

“This partnership with Booking.com offers great value to Maps.me users,” said Alex Grebnev, Co-Founder of Maps.Me. “Maps.me already helps millions of users to find their way. Next, it will be delivering tangible benefits such as loyalty rewards earned by participating in the platform and money in their pocket through cashback on purchases. Through the Maps.me wallet they can also earn passive income on stored value – up to 8% by lending out balances that are collateralized by highly liquid assets. We look forward to creating new opportunities to deliver unique products and services and making them available to Maps.me users soon.”

“Partnering with Maps.me on their new cashback rewards program is a natural fit for us at Booking.com,” said Mark van der Linden, Senior Director of Partnerships at Booking.com. “As travel begins to open up and people start looking to explore the world again, seamlessly connecting them with the amazing range of incredible places to stay on our platform as they literally look to navigate their way through new destinations is a great opportunity. Whether they’re looking for a funky city apartment, a secluded vacation home in the countryside or a resort on the beach, we’ve got the stay that’s right for them.”

The MAPS Rewards feature will be launched initially in selected markets in Europe and expanded in the future. In addition to the cashback partnership with Booking.com, users who hold MAPS Rewards will eventually be able to receive other discounts, with future rewards through other partners being able to be exchanged for cash, or to buy additional products and services. In all, the goal is for users to be able to effectively save money and service financial needs, and control when and how they want to use rewards they earn by using the platform.

“Our partnership with Booking.com is part of the next phase of our plans to ultimately embed a host of financial and other services that can be delivered when and how our customers need them. We are leveraging technology to connect consumers to real world DeFi applications that can enhance their financial lives. This is the first step in developing a core architecture for the masses,” said Viktor Mangazeev, co-Founder of Maps.me.

The stored value in Maps.me wallets will be kept in AAA-rated assets and held in a Swiss trust structure that is administered by TMF Services, a regulated trust services provider in Switzerland. TMF is the largest corporate service provider in the world, trusted by over 60% of Fortune 500 and FTSE 100 companies. Users enjoy this security as well as the convenience of accessing these services via a platform they know and love – all for zero or low fees.[1]

In March, Maps.me announced that it is adding next-generation financial capabilities to its platform, which was used by more than 60 million people worldwide last year. Through the services that will be available via its digital wallet, Maps.me aims to enrich people’s lives by providing them with a simple, immediate, and inexpensive way to pay, transfer across currencies, and earn passive income.

Maps.me 2.0 will enable users to:
– Earn yields of as much as 8% on stored value;
– Make payments via a linked credit card; and
– Transfer money instantly to friends and family globally and in 35 different currencies

Maps.me will soon be adding new features including eSIM connectivity, which will allow users to stay better connected. With this feature, users will have greater convenience and managed connectivity when using Internet service in more than 90 countries since they will be able to seamlessly switch mobile networks and no longer need to purchase prepaid SIM cards when they travel.

About Maps.me

Maps.me is the world’s leading off-line mapping application for travelers. Launched in 2011 it has been downloaded more than 140 million times. More than 60 million users worldwide were active in 2020 planning and navigating their travels and exploration in 195 countries. Maps.me users can download maps and be connected wherever they travel. An open-source advocate, Maps.me users are a primary contributor to the OpenStreetMapping Project globally. Beginning in 2021, the app will integrate financial services such as payment and currency exchange, telecom services including eSIM connectivity, and cash back opportunities, discounts, and other rewards.

[1] https://www.tmf-group.com/en/about-us/

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+852 3569 2275

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SOURCE: Maps.me

Maps.me to Launch Financial Services of the Future to Millions of Users

 Over 140,000 users have joined the waitlist for the launch of the Maps.me wallet
– Wallet will integrate access to payments, foreign exchange and passive income

 Maps.me today announced that it will add next-generation financial capabilities to its navigational services, aiming to enrich the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world by providing them with an easier way to pay, transfer, earn passive income and invest. From generating attractive investment returns in a low-interest world to making instantaneous payments across 35 currencies, Maps.me 2.0 will integrate convenient financial services with the world’s most popular off- line mapping platform.

“We’re excited to be building a holistic travel and financial platform that will be a trusted companion to our highly-engaged community of users as they explore the world and go about their daily lives,” said Alex Grebnev, Co-founder of Maps.me. “Maps.me has enhanced people’s ability to navigate, wherever they are going. Now, the same platform will offer financial services that are cheap, secure and highly relevant to the needs of Maps.me users.”

From maps to money

Maps.me is used to discover and navigate places – from the streets of Barcelona to the African savannah – and bookmark them for future use. The app’s open-source technology provides greater agility and choice for users, fueling an ever-increasing network that has enriched Maps.me itself. Over the last nine years, the app has been downloaded 140 million times, with 60 million people using it to navigate 195 countries in 2020.

Pilots, magazine photographers, professional cyclists, aid workers and everyday travellers love using its turn-by-turn routing, travel guides, and detailed mapping – which are all available without using often- costly mobile data. Maps.me is particularly popular with millennials in Europe: roughly 60% of users from are from the region, and more than 70% are between the ages of 18 and 40.

A recent survey conducted by Maps.me indicated that roughly half of its users are interested in accessing financial services via the app. More than 140,000 users have already joined the waiting list for a digital wallet that will allow them to:

– Earn yields of as much as 8% on stored value;
– Make payments via a linked credit card; and
– Transfer money instantly to friends and family globally and in 35 different currencies

The value in Maps.me wallets is invested in AAA-rated assets and held in a Swiss trust structure that is administered by TMF Services, a regulated entity in Switzerland. TMF is the largest corporate service provider in the world, trusted by over 60% of Fortune Global 500 and FTSE 100 companies. Users enjoy this security as well as the convenience of accessing these services via a platform they know and love – all for zero or low fees.*

A new approach to finance

The financial services offered via Maps.me will draw on a new approach to financial services: decentralized finance. DeFi is a user-driven financial system that uses smart contracts to allow people and institutions to transact directly with each other, rather than via a large financial institution.

Unnecessary middlemen are eliminated, cutting costs, increasing speed and certainty.

Since its inception, Maps.me has been open and community-driven, with users contributing to its development using the OpenStreetMap Project. Maps.me users are a substantial part of the OSM contributor group. Maps.me 2.0 builds upon that same spirit and DeFi makes this possible by allowing many to connect with many.

The roll-out of these financial capabilities with Maps.me 2.0 follows the platform’s acquisition last November by Daegu Limited, a member of the Parity.com Group.

The integration of financial services with the Maps.me platform is moving ahead quickly. Closed beta testing of the Maps.me wallet will be finalized in the next few weeks. Waitlisted users will start to be offered access to the wallet after the testing process is completed, followed by a broader launch in due course.

More about Maps.me

Maps.me is the world’s leading off-line mapping application for travelers. Launched in 2012 it has been downloaded more than 140 million times. More than 60 million users worldwide were active in 2020 planning and navigating their excursions in 195 countries. Maps.me users can download maps for their intended travels and then access their maps without the need for expensive roaming connectivity. An open-source advocate, Maps.me users are a primary contributor to the OpenStreetMapping Project globally. Beginning in 2021, the app will integrate payment, currency exchange and passive income services in 35 currencies to further enable explorers worldwide.

Media contacts:

Asia:
Adam@CaliberCorporateAdvisers.com
+852 3569 2275

North America:
ScottK@CaliberCorporateAdvisers.com
+1 917 647 1810