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Cyprus Airports Report Record Passenger Traffic In October 2024, Ministry Confirms Historic Year

Passenger numbers at Cyprus’ Larnaca and Paphos airports rose by 7.14% in October 2024 compared to the same month last year, as reported by the Ministry of Transport, Communications, and Works. This surge supports forecasts that 2024 will be a record-breaking year for the country’s two major airports, with total passenger numbers expected to exceed 12 million by year-end.

According to a Ministry press release, the January to October period has seen unprecedented passenger volumes, despite the challenges posed by rising geopolitical tensions. Overall, passenger traffic for the first ten months of the year rose by 5.3% compared to the same period in 2023, reinforcing the upward trend in air travel demand for Cyprus.

In October alone, Larnaca Airport recorded an 8.8% increase in passenger numbers, while Paphos Airport experienced a 3.2% rise. Larnaca saw nearly 1 million travellers (957,625), while Paphos welcomed 380,440 passengers, marking October as one of the busiest months in recent history.

The primary travel markets for these airports were the United Kingdom, Greece, Israel, Poland, and Germany. Flight traffic also saw a significant boost, with a 10.54% increase in October compared to the previous year, totalling 10,390 flights. 

Revised projections from the Ministry now anticipate a historic year for both airports, driven by sustained demand. As 2024 draws to a close, Larnaca and Paphos are poised to surpass 12 million passengers, setting a new benchmark for the island’s aviation sector.

payabl. Launches Click To Pay With Visa To Help Merchants Improve Checkout Conversion And Reduce Fraud

payabl. has launched Click to Pay with Visa, a new card payment experience designed to help merchants reduce checkout friction, improve authorisation rates, and deliver a faster, more secure online payment journey.

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Click to Pay replaces manual card number entry with a token-based checkout experience. Once a customer’s card is enrolled, they can complete purchases in just a few clicks, without re-entering card details. The result is a faster checkout that mirrors the ease of contactless payments in-store, while maintaining strong security standards.

For merchants, the impact is measurable. According to Visa, Click to Pay can deliver up to a 11% uplift in authorisation rates compared to manual card entry, alongside significant fraud reduction through network tokenisation. Faster checkout also helps reduce cart abandonment, particularly on mobile, where typing card details remains a major source of friction.

“With online checkout, every extra step costs conversion,” said Breno Oliveira, Chief Product Officer at payabl. “Visa Click to Pay removes one of the biggest points of friction at the moment of purchase. It helps merchants approve more legitimate transactions, reduce fraud exposure, and give customers the experience they already expect.” 

Visa Click to Pay is available through payabl. checkout, enabling merchants to activate the service without additional integration complexity. The solution works across devices and supports existing security flows, including 3D Secure where required.

“Consumers have come to expect a highly personalised, intuitive, and seamless payment experience, whether they’re buying a coffee, shopping online, or applying for a loan. Visa Click to Pay aims to meet these expectations by removing the need to manually enter card details, thus enhancing both security and the consumer experience in online card payments. With the support of network tokens, Visa Click to Pay enabled a more secure and smoother transaction process, available in many countries around the world. According to European VisaNet data, Visa Click to Pay may allow a 4.5% uplift in merchant sales, meaning a possible annual increase of €51 bn in SMB eCommerce sales in the UK and EU,” said Michael Ioannides, Country Manager, Visa Cyprus.

The launch forms part of payabl.’s broader focus on checkout optimisation, helping merchants improve conversion, approvals, and payment reliability at scale. Click to Pay with Visa is now live for eligible merchants across Europe. 

Checkout expectations are rising across Europe 

Insights from payabl.’s State of European Checkouts report underline why frictionless checkout experiences are becoming a commercial priority. The research found that consumers cite speed (46%), convenience (44%), and security (41%) as the top reasons for choosing a payment method. More than half of consumers (53%) are open to switching to newer payment methods and nearly half (48%) are open to one-click checkouts, provided the solution is backed by a trusted brand such as Visa.

“Checkout is no longer just the final step of a transaction,” said Oliveira. “It is a critical part of the overall customer experience. Our research shows that 43% of European consumers will not return to a site after a poor checkout experience. For merchants across the UK and Europe, that translates directly into lost customers and lost revenue.”

The launch forms part of payabl.’s broader focus on checkout optimisation, helping merchants improve conversion, approvals, and payment reliability at scale. Click to Pay with Visa is now live for eligible merchants across Europe.

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