Flywire and Tribal Group Partner to Deliver Integrated Payments Solution for Education Market

Rhea-AI Summary

Flywire has partnered with Tribal Group to become the preferred payment partner for their student information system across EMEA and APAC. This collaboration aims to enhance payment experiences for students while streamlining operations for educational institutions. A recent survey indicated strong demand for global education, with 68% of surveyed students either studying abroad or planning to. This partnership not only simplifies international payments but also offers flexible payment plans to ease financial burdens for families. The integration has shown early positive results for institutions in operational efficiency.

Positive

• Partnership enhances Flywire's reach in EMEA and APAC markets.
• Integrated solution improves payment operational efficiency for institutions.
• Early adoption results in reduced manual efforts and cash savings for universities.
• 83% of UK students reported needing assistance with education expenses, indicating significant market demand.
• Institutions gain a consolidated platform for various payment options.

Negative

• None.

Strategic partnership makes Flywire the preferred payment partner for Tribal Group, the leading Student Information System in EMEA and APAC

Flywire’s integrated offering with Tribal Group delivers a seamless payment experience for students and operational efficiencies for higher education institutions

BOSTON and BRISTOL, United Kingdom, March 08, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Flywire Corporation (Flywire) (Nasdaq: FLYW) a global payments enablement and software company, announced a strategic partnership with Tribal Group (LON: TRB), a leading provider of Education Technology SaaS solutions globally. Tribal Group will extend Flywire’s digital education payments platform into its student information system, enabling a seamless payment experience for students and administrators in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) as well as in the Asia Pacific (APAC) markets.

The demand for global education remains strong. In a recent Flywire survey of more than 1,400 students in seven different countries, 68% were either studying abroad or planned to. Countries in EMEA and APAC are among the most popular destinations according to Project Atlas, a global research initiative that studies international student mobility. Countries in those regions account for seven of the top ten destination countries worldwide, and host over 2.3 million students each year. Europe in particular is also a favored destination for U.S. students according to the 2021 Open Doors Study Abroad Report, with 58% of all U.S. students studying abroad attending schools there.

International students add to the campus experience for many schools and represent an important revenue stream as well. But managing student payments originating from different countries and in different currencies can create difficult challenges for their finance teams. They have to manage domestic and international payments in different systems. Reconciling international payments typically requires a lot of manual effort for staff and can complicate student registration. This all creates complexity and friction for both students and university staff.

Likewise, students and families are seeking more simplified ways to pay their tuition and other expenses, especially as a means to ease their financial burdens. In the same report from Flywire, 83% of students in the U.K. said they needed help affording education expenses and 70% said the option to pay in installments makes education more affordable.

The partnership between Flywire and Tribal Group is designed to help solve both sides of the payment equation. For students and families, the solution provides a highly-tailored, convenient and secure digital payment experience, which can be customized by university, country, and currency. It also enables institutions to consolidate the multiple payment options they offer, which accelerates funds flow, eases reconciliation and streamlines operational efficiencies. Additionally, institutions can create custom payment plans to provide students and families with greater flexibility.

“The integrated solution between Flywire and Tribal has been fundamental to improving our payment operations, and within months it has already paid back the investment many times over, through reduced staff effort and real cash savings,” said Peter Wreford, Head of Student Finance, University of Warwick. “We have consolidated our methods of payment with Flywire accepted as the exclusive online hub for our student payments for tuition and accommodation fees, resulting in significant reductions in manual and clerical effort.”

Additional benefits of the integrated solution between Flywire and Tribal Group for institutions include:

• Reduced inbound contact volume
• Increased payer satisfaction
• Automated payment process
• Faster electronic payment allocation
• Accelerated ancillary processing around student visas, enrolment and credit control
• Simplified refunds process coupled with fewer payment inquiries
• Significant reduction in merchant processing fees via more payment options
  

“We are thrilled to continue to build on our longstanding relationship with Tribal Global to become their preferred payment partner in EMEA and APAC,” said Sharon Butler, EVP and GM of Global Education, Flywire. Mark Wilson, Chief Operating Officer, Tribal Group added: “Tribal has such extensive knowledge of the higher education market, and their solutions continue to set the standard for how institutions should be engaging with students today. Together, we deliver exceptional payment experiences for students and institutions alike.”

Resources

• Learn more about Flywire’s digital payments platform for higher education: Flywire's digital education payments platform
• See why Flywire is the trusted choice for millions of students, thousands of institutions and hundreds of education agents and partners worldwide: The Trusted Choice
• Join Tribal and Flywire as they present the joint solution in the webinar, The Power of Partnership: Tribal & Flywire on 10 March, 2022 at 14:00 U.K.: Sign up here
  

About Flywire

Flywire (Nasdaq: FLYW) is a global payments enablement and software company. Flywire combines its proprietary global payments network, next-gen payments platform and vertical-specific software to deliver the most important and complex payments for clients and their customers.

Flywire leverages its vertical-specific software and payments technology to deeply embed within the existing A/R workflows for its clients across the education, healthcare and travel vertical markets, as well as in key B2B industries. Flywire also integrates with leading ERP systems, so organizations can optimize the payment experience for their customers while eliminating operational challenges.

Flywire supports 2,500+ clients with diverse payment methods in more than 140 currencies across 240 countries and territories around the world. Flywire is headquartered in Boston, MA, USA with global offices.

About Tribal Group

Tribal, a leader in education technology solutions and services, empowers the world of education and works with over 500 institutions globally. Tribal provides software and services that inspire the world of education and solutions that underpin success across the student lifecycle. We help our customers transform the digital student experience with greater efficiency and improved outcomes through cloud-based solutions that ensure value every step of the way.

Safe Harbor Statement

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Flywire’s future operating results and financial position, Flywire’s business strategy and plans, market growth and trends, and Flywire’s objectives for future operations. Flywire intends such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as, but not limited to, “believe,” “may,” “will,” “potentially,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “could,” “would,” “project,” “target,” “plan,” “expect,” or the negative of these terms, and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations that involve risks, changes in circumstances, assumptions, and uncertainties. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in Flywire's forward-looking statements. New risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for Flywire to predict all risks, nor can Flywire assess the impact of all factors on Flywire’s business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements Flywire may make. Further information on these and additional risks are described in the "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of Flywire's Prospectus and Flywire’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2021, both of which are on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and available on the SEC's website at https://www.sec.gov/. Additional factors may be described in those sections of Flywire’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, expected to be filed with the SEC in the first quarter of 2022. Any forward-looking statement made by Flywire in this news release are based on information available to Flywire on the date hereof. Flywire assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

Contacts

Media Contacts:

Sarah King
Sarah.King@Flywire.com 

Prosek Partners
pro-flywire@prosek.com 

Investor Relations Contact:
ICR
flywireir@icrinc.com 

FAQ

What is Flywire's new partnership about?

Flywire has partnered with Tribal Group to provide a seamless payment solution for higher education institutions in EMEA and APAC, enhancing the payment experience for students.

How does the Flywire and Tribal Group partnership benefit students?

The partnership offers a convenient, secure digital payment experience that can be customized by university, country, and currency, easing the financial burden on students.

What impact does the Flywire partnership have on educational institutions?

It simplifies payment processes, reduces manual efforts, and consolidates various payment methods, leading to operational efficiencies and improved cash flow.

When was the Flywire and Tribal Group partnership announced?

The partnership was announced on March 8, 2022.

What percentage of students in the UK need help with education expenses?

According to a recent survey, 83% of students in the UK indicated they needed assistance with education expenses.