Emirates Adds Cryptocurrency Payments for UAE Customers Through Crypto.com
Emirates has introduced cryptocurrency-funded payments for eligible customers in the United Arab Emirates, allowing travelers to purchase flights through Crypto.com Pay.
The new option is available through the Emirates website and mobile app. Customers must have an eligible Crypto.com account, live in the UAE, and make a booking priced and settled in Emirati dirhams.
Emirates has not announced when Crypto.com Pay will become available outside the UAE. For now, the rollout is a controlled domestic-market launch rather than a global change to the airline’s payment system.
Read our stories in your inbox
Two aviation newsletters. Zero fluff.
How Crypto.com Pay Works on Emirates
Crypto.com Pay appears alongside Emirates’ other payment methods during checkout.
Customers booking through the Emirates mobile app are redirected to the Crypto.com app, where they select a cryptocurrency from their wallet and approve the transaction. They are then returned to the Emirates app to receive their booking confirmation and electronic ticket.
On a desktop computer, the process uses a QR code. The customer selects Crypto.com Pay on the Emirates checkout page, scans the displayed code with the Crypto.com app, and approves the transaction from a mobile device.
Once Crypto.com confirms the payment, Emirates issues the reservation confirmation and ticket on its website. The process is designed to function more like a digital wallet transaction than a conventional cryptocurrency transfer requiring customers to manually copy an address.
The payment option is not limited to a particular Emirates route, cabin, or aircraft. It is integrated into the airline’s digital checkout system, meaning eligible UAE bookings can use it regardless of whether the flight is operated by an Airbus A350, Airbus A380, or Boeing 777.
Emirates Prices and Settles the Ticket in Dirhams
Although customers can fund the purchase with cryptocurrency, Emirates continues to price and settle the ticket in Emirati dirhams.
That distinction protects the airline from needing to display fares in volatile digital currencies. A ticket costing AED 5,000 does not suddenly become more or less expensive because the value of Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency changes while the customer is searching for flights.
Crypto.com Pay calculates the amount of cryptocurrency required to cover the AED fare at checkout. Its merchant platform then captures and converts the payment while guaranteeing the merchant the specified fiat value.
Crypto.com’s business documentation says customers may select from supported assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cronos, Dogecoin, USD Coin, and other tokens available through its platform. Emirates has not published a separate list of currencies enabled specifically for airline bookings, so availability may vary by account and transaction.
In practical terms, Emirates is accepting Crypto.com Pay as a payment channel rather than pricing airline tickets directly in Bitcoin. The airline has not said that it intends to retain cryptocurrency on its balance sheet.
Availability Is Limited to Eligible UAE Residents
The most important limitation is geographic.
Crypto.com Pay is currently available only to eligible UAE residents purchasing tickets priced and settled in AED. A traveler in the United States, Europe, or another market will not necessarily see the option simply because the itinerary includes Dubai International Airport (DXB).
The restriction is based on the customer’s eligibility and booking market, not the origin or destination of the flight.
Emirates has not provided a timetable for an international rollout. Expanding the option would require the companies to account for different digital-asset regulations, consumer protections, payment rules, and settlement currencies across numerous jurisdictions.
The integration is being provided through Crypto.com’s Dubai entity. Emirates says that entity was the first virtual asset service provider to receive a Stored Value Facilities license from the Central Bank of the UAE and operates within that regulatory framework.
Partnership Was Announced in July 2025
Emirates and Crypto.com first disclosed their plans in July 2025, when the companies signed a memorandum of understanding to explore adding Crypto.com Pay to the airline’s reservation system.
At the time, Emirates said the proposed integration would appeal to younger, technology-focused travelers and provide customers with greater flexibility in how they pay for flights.
The companies moved from the initial agreement to a live payment product in approximately one year. The original partnership also included plans for promotional campaigns intended to increase customer awareness and adoption of the payment method.
Emirates Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer Adnan Kazim described the launch as part of the airline’s effort to keep pace with customers who increasingly manage finances and travel through mobile devices.
The development also supports Dubai’s wider effort to expand digital payments. The city’s Cashless Strategy targets digital processing for 90% of government and private-sector financial transactions by the end of 2026.
Emirates Is Not the First Airline to Accept Crypto
Claims that Emirates is the first airline to accept cryptocurrency are incorrect.
Latvian carrier airBaltic became the world’s first airline to accept Bitcoin as a ticket-payment option in July 2014. Ticket prices remained denominated in euros, with the cryptocurrency converted as part of the payment process.
The airline’s own historical timeline identifies the 2014 launch as the first of its kind. airBaltic also continues to list BitPay among its accepted payment options, demonstrating that cryptocurrency-funded airline purchases predate the Emirates launch by more than a decade.
Several other aviation and travel companies have experimented with cryptocurrency since then. Emirates is still significant because of its size, international network, and position as one of the world’s largest long-haul airlines.
A crypto payment option offered by Emirates could receive substantially more transaction volume and international attention than similar programs introduced by smaller carriers.
The more accurate distinction is that Emirates is among the largest global airlines to integrate cryptocurrency-funded payments directly into its own website and mobile application.
Refunds Could Work Differently From Card Payments
Emirates has not yet published detailed, airline-specific guidance covering refunds for tickets purchased through Crypto.com Pay.
The ticket’s fare conditions should still determine whether it is refundable and whether cancellation fees apply. The method used to return an approved refund, however, could differ from a credit card transaction.
Crypto.com Pay’s general merchant documentation states that customers who paid through the Crypto.com app can have a refund returned automatically to their account. Users can also establish a preferred cryptocurrency for receiving refunds.
That does not necessarily mean a customer will receive the same quantity or type of cryptocurrency originally spent. Because the Emirates ticket is priced in AED, the refund would likely be based on the eligible fiat value after any fare penalties rather than the digital asset’s value on the original purchase date.
Travelers using the payment option should review the final checkout terms carefully, particularly when buying a restrictive fare or making a reservation that may later need to be changed.
Why Crypto Payments Matter to Emirates
The new payment method is unlikely to replace credit cards, bank transfers, digital wallets, or Emirates Skywards redemptions. Its immediate value is offering another choice to a specific group of customers who already hold digital assets.
Crypto.com gains access to Emirates’ large customer base and another practical use for its payment platform. Emirates gains a payment option that may appeal to customers who prefer not to convert cryptocurrency through a bank or card account before purchasing travel.
The arrangement could also reduce some of the complexity that would arise if Emirates attempted to process blockchain transactions independently. Crypto.com manages the wallet interface, conversion process, regulatory framework, and payment confirmation, while Emirates continues issuing a conventional AED-denominated airline ticket.
The success of the program will depend on transaction volume, customer demand, refund handling, and whether the payment method can be expanded beyond the UAE without adding excessive regulatory and operational complexity.
Bottom Line
Emirates now allows eligible UAE residents to purchase flights through Crypto.com Pay when bookings are priced and settled in Emirati dirhams.
Customers using the Emirates app are redirected to Crypto.com to approve payment from their wallet. Desktop users scan a QR code before returning to the Emirates website for their confirmation and electronic ticket.
The arrangement gives customers the ability to fund a booking with cryptocurrency, but Emirates continues to price and settle the underlying transaction in AED. That means the airline is adding a crypto-powered payment channel rather than pricing tickets or holding fares directly in Bitcoin.
Emirates is not the first airline to accept cryptocurrency. airBaltic introduced Bitcoin payments in 2014 and continues to support crypto-funded purchases through BitPay.
Nevertheless, Emirates’ size makes the launch important. It brings cryptocurrency payments into the checkout system of one of the world’s largest international airlines and provides a closely watched test of whether digital assets can become a meaningful payment option for mainstream air travel.
Keep reading FlyMag
Get the Daily Brief in the morning or the Route Watch weekly recap on Fridays. Or both.
