Launching Crypto Checkout for Booking.com Travelers: Segment, Flow, Rollout and Risks

You lead product for payments at Booking.com. Lay out how Booking.com could start accepting cryptocurrency from travelers: who it is for, how paying and refunds would work, and how you would launch and measure it. ```hint Volatility meets free cancellation Crypto prices move and blockchain payments cannot be reversed, while many stays are paid weeks ahead and can be cancelled. Ask what that combination means for pricing and refunds, and let it shape which bookings you start with. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - What is the main goal: winning travelers who hold crypto, rescuing payments that fail on cards, lowering payment costs, or something else? - Should crypto apply only to bookings where Booking.com takes the payment at booking, or also to stays paid at the property? - Is Booking.com willing to hold crypto, or should every payment be converted into regular currency straight away? - Do we start with stays only, or also flights and car rentals, and are there markets we must avoid? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A clear reason to add crypto and a realistic view of who would use it - The end-to-end flow: price quote, rate lock, confirmation, settlement, cancellation and refund - A partner-or-build decision for processing, custody and compliance - A phased launch with an incrementality metric and guardrails for fraud, support load and checkout conversion - Risks: volatility, country-by-country legality, irreversible mistakes and scams ### Follow-up Questions - A traveler pays in crypto, then cancels a free-cancellation stay after the coin's price has moved. What do you refund, in which currency, and why? - Some months after launch, very few travelers use it. What evidence would make you keep, change or remove it? - A large hotel chain asks to be paid in crypto instead of local currency. How do you respond?