kabarsula Flight Centre’s Clinton Hearne: Credit card shake-up opens door to loyalty disruption bandar SLOT INDONESIA

Flight Centre Travel Group’s executive general manager of customer loyalty, Clinton Hearne, believes Australia’s looming payment reforms could open the door to new players in the travel loyalty market.

Speaking to Travel Weekly ahead of the 1 October changes, Hearne said the reduction in interchange fees could create opportunities for travel companies to challenge established loyalty programs.

“I actually think it allows for new entrants to be a little bit more disruptive and innovative,” he said.

Hearne revealed that Flight Centre had anticipated changes to the credit card rewards landscape when developing its World360 Rewards program.

“This would have been on the table for a while, we just didn’t know when it would be or for how much,” he said.

He said the company had factored potential regulatory changes into the design of the program, including how it would reward customers across its travel brands and non-travel partners.

The reforms come as credit card providers face pressure to reassess their loyalty offerings, with Hearne pointing to reductions in points-earning rates, fewer card benefits and higher annual fees.

“Traditionally, a lot of loyalty propositions have been funded by the credit cards interchange,” he said.

He said some cards that previously offered one point per dollar spent could reduce their earning rates to 0.75 or even 0.5 points.

“It’s probably the best time ever if you’re a customer or a loyalty person to look at what reward systems you have and what loyalty programs you’re a part of,” he said.

“If you want the most value, there is a bit of a flux at the second, so you might have to shop around.”

Flight Centre’s loyalty strategy

The comments come as Flight Centre expands its loyalty offering, with World360 Rewards attracting around 600,000 members in Australia since launching (based on the FY2026 financial results).

The company described the program as a proactive approach to customer engagement in its latest financial results, with plans to extend it to Corporate Traveller and Flight Centre Business Travel later this year.

Flight Centre is also investing in AI to support its loyalty offering, with its financial results revealing that a new AI agent supports World360 Rewards.

Hearne said the program’s broad network of travel and non-travel partners had been central to its design, particularly as the traditional credit card rewards model comes under pressure.

World360 Rewards allows members to earn and redeem points across more than 500 airlines, 900,000 hotels and 41 cruise lines.

“We’re not trying to compete with your airline loyalty programs,” Hearne said.

Travellers booking eligible flights through Flight Centre, Travel Associates or Cruiseabout can earn airline frequent flyer points alongside World360 Rewards points, with the potential to earn a third set of points when paying with an eligible rewards credit card.

Hearne said the approach allowed customers to benefit from multiple loyalty programs rather than having to choose between them.

Travel agents become ‘points hackers’

Flight Centre’s frontline travel agents also have a role to play in helping customers navigate the changing loyalty landscape.

“I’d say we have two and a half thousand points hackers for you,” Hearne said.

Agents could help customers identify available rewards, check their points balances and combine points with cash when booking holidays.

The program also allows customers to use points towards flights, hotels, cruises and experiences, rather than relying solely on the availability of airline reward seats.

The strategy comes as Flight Centre looks to capitalise on Australians’ appetite for travel and growing interest in loyalty programs.

Hearne said younger consumers increasingly expected to be rewarded for their spending, while more experienced loyalty members understood the financial value of accumulating points.

He believes the changing market presents an opportunity for travellers to rethink how they earn rewards, particularly through everyday purchases.

“In an ideal world, you’re not actually even spending more, you’re just getting more out of what you’re spending in that everyday sort of world,” he said.

For travel agents, Hearne said the focus should be on helping customers identify the programs that offer the greatest value for their individual travel plans.

“Know what you’re trying to achieve,” he said.