COMPANY

Name: TrustaBit

Legal Name: TrustaBit, LLC 

Location: Los Angeles, CA

Founded: June 2017

Founder(s): Saritta Hines

Website: https://www.trustabit.io/ 

Social Media: 5838 likes on Facebook, 1184 followers on Twitter, 121 followers on LinkedIn

Industry: Global blockchain technology Market

Future: $57,641.3M by 2025 (Source: PRNewswire)

Introduction

TrustaBit, is a travel tech startup that automates flight delay compensation by harnessing blockchain technology. This white-label SaaS software is used by airlines to let passengers know of flight delays or cancellations, and then automatically offer compensation in the form of air miles, vouchers, or currency. 

“Trustabit will allow airlines to set scenarios and amounts into smart contracts, control how vouchers are sent to new or existing accounts, and create branded notifications for customers. This customization will allow them the opportunity to build positive brand experiences at every customer touchpoint,” said a press release. 

Apart from building customer loyalty, it also helps airlines reduce costs related to issuing flight vouchers and call center running costs. 

Additionally, TrustaBit ensures compliance with the European Union regulation that requires passengers to be compensated for delays in flights greater than 2 hours. 

The Product

With TrustaBit, updates on flight cancellations or delays and compensation details are delivered directly and automatically to each flyer’s smartphone. The app even features a detailed history of each user’s claims and redemption.

“What we’re providing airlines is a way to improve the passenger experience and speed up the compensation process that happens when flight disruptions occur,” Saritta Hines said to Fora.

Now, what sets TrustaBit apart from the competition is that they use a private blockchain called Hyperledger Fabric that safeguards sensitive airline API data. Using this technology, all the flyer and their flight details can be collected without having a customer service agent call fliers and manage the delays. And it does so by integrating with partner airlines’ existing apps and customer management tools.

“We needed a way to provide a low-touch application that would allow passenger self-service and enable airline personnel to focus on escalations, rather than repetitive tasks,” Hines told APEX Media. “Smart contracts are the answer to this, as they code the business rules to be carried out on the blockchain. Because our clients deal with high volumes of passenger data, we elected to use Hyperledger Fabric, an enterprise blockchain solution boasting all of the technological benefits, such as heightened security, not just the hype.”

According to StartEngine, TrustaBit charges $8 as transaction fee for the first 50,000 vouchers issued. After this threshold is crossed, the startup receives $5 per new voucher issued. 

Currently, it is focused on the European market, versus the US market; as the former has more operating airline carriers. 

Origin and Founding Team

As Hines, an industry expert in data analytics, was building an Ethereum mining rig with her grade-schooler daughter she began thinking of how blockchain technology can help solve real-world problems. That’s when she noted that the airline industry had quite archaic means of flight disruption notification and compensation management. On conducting further research, she saw that several European airlines have entire departments that dedicatedly handle repetitive tasks pertaining to flight delay management. In a move to automate such mundane roles, she birthed the white-labeled flight disruption management solution – TrustaBit.

In the autumn of 2018, Hines launched the proof-of-concept app. Following this, she participated in the Propeller Shannon startup program from January to April 2019, as mentioned in Fora. This helped her meet new clients and build her industry contacts.

Performance and Trends

According to Crunchbase, in January 2019, TrustaBit secured $50k from Expert Dojo. Prior to that, in October 2018, the startup received $16.6K from an equity crowdfunding initiative.

Its revenue in Q2 and A3 of 2019 was $2.8M, according to Zoominfo.

As told to Phocuswire, the startup hopes to widen its revenue avenues by including ride-share companies, hotels, and airport vendor partners to its blockchain network.