From Booking Chaos to Full Control: How Boya Helps Travel Agencies Gain Expense Visibility and Efficiency

For many travel agencies, these financial transactions are the hidden battlefield where efficiency is won or lost. And in Eastern Africa, where corporate card infrastructure is still developing, the challenge becomes even greater.

Sarah Abdi knows this struggle better than most. With over 38 years in travel management and as a leader at Highlight Travel Limited (trading as BCD Travel Kenya), she has seen how fragmented expense management can drain resources, create unnecessary risk, and frustrate finance teams.

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The Pain Behind Every Booking

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While clients see seamless itineraries, travel agencies are often juggling a complex web of payments behind the scenes. The most common issues they face include:

• Low corporate card adoption
  In Eastern Africa, very few companies can obtain true corporate cards. Agencies end up issuing personal cards to employees, creating scattered spending and major reconciliation headaches.
  
  
• Lack of transaction clarity
  As Sarah recalls, “Card companies don’t really capture company names. You end up spending three to four hours trying to figure out who made a charge, and sometimes you still can’t tell.”
  
  
• Fraud and security risks
  Unauthorized charges, duplicate payments, and non-compliant spending slip through when there’s no centralized oversight. Sarah experienced charges that were linked to known partners but were unclear in statements—forcing card cancellations and reissuance multiple times.
  
  
• Delayed reconciliation and reporting
  Without real-time data, finance teams operate in the dark. “Half the time, you’re chasing receipts and reconciling days or weeks after the transaction,” Sarah says.
  
  
• Operational inefficiency
  When reconciliation becomes a detective game, finance is left “not smiling,” as Sarah puts it. The time lost could have been used for strategic planning or improving customer service.
  
  

These issues are more than an inconvenience—they directly impact profitability, client trust, and an agency’s ability to grow.

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The Turning Point: Meeting Boya

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For Sarah’s agency, the breakthrough came when Boya introduced its virtual corporate card solution.

“For a company our size, you were the only solution at that point,” she says. “When you walked in and explained that a virtual card could do exactly what we needed, we said, ‘Why not give it a try?’ And the fact that you were a Kenyan company mattered—we believe in buying Kenya and building Kenya.”

Onboarding wasn’t just a technical process—it was a collaboration. Sarah describes Boya’s team as “very supportive, adaptable, and responsive to changes.” Importantly, there was no downtime during the transition. Watch the full video here.

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How Boya Solves the Travel Agency Expense Problem

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1. Virtual Cards for Every Booking Need
Boya’s virtual cards replaced the patchwork of personal cards. Each card could be issued for a specific purpose—whether for a single hotel booking, an airline payment, or a department’s monthly budget. This brought instant traceability and full control.

“We can now see exactly which department or person made a payment,” Sarah says. “It has eliminated so much back-and-forth.”

2. Real-Time Visibility
Transactions—whether via card, M-Pesa, or bank transfer—are logged instantly, categorized, and linked to a department or budget. Finance no longer waits for month-end statements to understand where money went.

3. Policy Enforcement by Default
Boya enables agencies to set spend rules that apply automatically:

• Hotel bookings cannot exceed a set nightly rate.
  
  
• Payments to vendors must go through approved channels.
  
  

This prevents non-compliant spending before it happens.

4. Fraud Prevention
Since moving to Boya, Sarah’s agency has had zero fraud cases. Virtual cards can be issued for single use or restricted to specific merchants, drastically reducing exposure.

5. Bulk Payments Made Easy
Through Boya’s integration with M-Pesa and banks, bulk vendor payouts are seamless—no more manual uploads or risky transfers.

6. Sustainability Gains
Eliminating physical plastic cards supports the agency’s sustainability goals. “This year, we committed to reducing waste, and Boya helped us achieve that,” Sarah notes.

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Real Business Impact

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The transformation was immediate and measurable:

• Zero fraud incidents since switching to Boya
  
  
• Hours saved on reconciliation—now done with a few clicks
  
  
• Full department-level visibility for better budget management
  
  
• Reduced operational costs from eliminating duplicate or unauthorized spend
  
  
• Stronger vendor relationships, backed by accurate spend data
  
  

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Why Visibility is a Strategic Advantage for Travel Agencies

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In an industry where margins are thin and client expectations are high, financial visibility is no longer optional—it’s a competitive advantage.

Without it, agencies risk:

• Revenue leakage from unapproved transactions
  
  
• Missed opportunities to negotiate better vendor terms
  
  
• Budget overruns due to delayed data
  
  
• Audit and compliance headaches
  
  

With it, agencies can:

• Make faster, better-informed decisions
  
  
• Strengthen client trust through transparency
  
  
• Allocate resources more strategically
  
  
• Improve profitability
  
  

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Proudly Kenyan, Built for Travel Agencies

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When asked to describe Boya in one sentence, Sarah hesitates—not because she’s unsure, but because there’s too much to say. “Fantastic. Brilliant. A must-have. I’m proud as a Kenyan to work with you, and I love Boya.”

For travel agencies still battling with fragmented payment systems, Sarah’s story is proof that the solution is within reach. The combination of real-time visibility, control, and fraud prevention isn’t just about saving money—it’s about freeing teams to focus on what they do best: delivering exceptional travel experiences.

Stop guessing where your money is going. Start controlling it—with Boya.

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