Travala Builds AVA Lockups Into New Crypto Payment Partner Program

Travala is developing AVA+ Partners, a program that would let approved crypto projects seek payment acceptance on its booking platform by locking the AVA token (AVA), making partner access contingent on a token commitment.

To participate, a project would buy AVA on the open market, obtain a Travel Tiger NFT, activate a Smart Diamond membership and place AVA in a dedicated smart contract. The tokens would stay locked for as long as the project’s own token is accepted on Travala. Partners would receive rewards during that period.

Travala would approve each business partner, with individual agreements setting participation terms such as withdrawal fees. Projects could leave at any time, but those exiting early would contribute part of their locked AVA to the AVA Strategic Reserve. Travala has committed not to sell or transfer tokens held in the reserve. The program is limited to approved business partners and may be modified or discontinued.

Partner balances would count toward a long-term goal of locking 30% of AVA’s circulating supply, alongside AVA locked through the AVA Smart Program and AVA+ Rewards. The AVA Smart Program provides customer travel benefits, including discounts for paying with AVA and loyalty rewards. The arrangement extends Travala’s AVA supply strategy, which also includes a reserve policy and buyback schedule.

Steve Hipwell, AVA Foundation lead contributor, described the program as a way to turn activity on Travala into a longer-term commitment to AVA. “It’s a use case that grows directly with the expansion of our partner and payment ecosystem,” Hipwell said.