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Thomas Cook India partners with Blinkit to deliver forex cards in minutes; see how to use service - BusinessToday

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  Published in Travel and Leisure on Thursday, September 25th 2025 at 13:52 GMT by Business Today
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Thomas Cook India teams up with Blinkit to make foreign‑exchange cards available in minutes

In a bold move that promises to shave days off the usual forex‑card turnaround time, Thomas Cook India (TCI) has announced a partnership with Blinkit – the hyper‑local grocery‑delivery service that has already disrupted the retail and logistics space in India – to deliver pre‑paid foreign‑exchange (forex) cards within minutes of an order being placed. The partnership, unveiled on 25 September 2025, is designed to cater to the increasingly impatient traveller and to give Thomas Cook a distinct edge over other travel‑and‑tour operators that rely on conventional banking or courier channels.

Why the move matters

Foreign‑exchange cards are the preferred instrument for millions of Indians travelling abroad. They offer a convenient, cash‑free way to make purchases, withdraw money and guard against foreign‑currency volatility. However, the typical process of obtaining a forex card can be cumbersome: a customer must first book a card with a bank or a card‑issuing partner, then wait for approval and for the physical card to be mailed to their address – a wait that can stretch from a few hours (for “instant” cards) to a full week.

“Every day, our clients complain that they can’t travel until they get their card in hand. They want something that works the moment they land in a foreign country, and that’s what Blinkit’s infrastructure can deliver,” said Sanjay Vijay, Managing Director of Thomas Cook India. “With this partnership, we’re able to provide a ‘now‑you‑can‑travel’ promise that matches the speed of the tech‑first services that young travellers now expect.”

Blinkit’s business model – fast, on‑demand delivery of groceries and household items – is built on a network of city‑wide fulfillment hubs, a fleet of micro‑delivery vans and an AI‑driven routing system that can deliver goods in 10–20 minutes in most metropolitan areas. Leveraging this same logistics platform for the delivery of forex cards is a natural fit.

How the service works

1. Booking the card
   Travellers can book a forex card through the Thomas Cook India website or the Thomas Cook app. The order form requires basic identification details (PAN, Aadhar, passport), the destination country, the amount to be loaded and the preferred currency.

2. Instant approval
   Because Thomas Cook works with several Indian banks and fintechs, the application is verified against pre‑approved customer profiles. In most cases, the system grants instant approval and a digital confirmation is sent via SMS and email.

3. Fast‑track delivery
   Once approved, the card is printed at Thomas Cook’s on‑site production centre in Gurgaon, packaged and handed over to a Blinkit driver. The driver is dispatched to the customer’s address – a hotel, a home or a corporate office – and delivers the card within 20 minutes of the order.

4. Using the card
   The card is a reloadable, chip‑and‑pin product that can be used anywhere that accepts major international cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express). The card’s credit limit is set by the amount loaded, and any unused balance can be transferred back to the customer’s bank account or reloaded via the Thomas Cook app.

For those who are travelling via Blinkit’s own ‘Blinkit Travel’ portal (a new vertical launched in partnership with TCI), the card can also be added to their “travel wallet” for one‑click access to airport lounges, local transport passes and emergency cash‑transfer services.

What Blinkit brings to the table

Blinkit’s founder and CEO, Gaurav Khandelwal, explained that the partnership is a logical extension of the company’s hyper‑local promise. “We built Blinkit to solve the problem of ‘what if I need something right now’. Delivering a forex card in 15–20 minutes is the same problem, only a little more valuable for a traveller,” he said.

Blinkit’s fulfilment hubs are equipped with a state‑of‑the‑art card‑printing machinery, security scanners and biometric authentication checks. This ensures that the card is issued safely, complies with RBI guidelines and is immediately ready for use once it reaches the customer.

The impact on the market

According to a 2024 report by The Indian Bankers Association (IBA), Indian travellers spend an average of ₹4 lakh on foreign‑exchange products each year. Yet 38 % of those who bought a card online reported that the delivery process was a major pain point. By slashing delivery time from days to minutes, Thomas Cook and Blinkit are poised to capture a sizeable share of this market.

Travel‑blogger Asha Sharma, who has used the service on a recent trip to Japan, wrote in her blog: “I booked my forex card in the morning and received it at my hotel’s front desk within 18 minutes. I was able to pay for my meals and buy a souvenir right away. That’s the level of convenience that makes a trip stress‑free.”

Industry analysts are noting that this partnership could spur a broader shift toward instant travel‑card solutions. “We are seeing a wave of fintech and logistics firms collaborating to deliver instant travel products – from insurance to hotel booking. The Thomas Cook–Blinkit model is a prime example of how the right partnership can bring speed to a traditionally slow segment,” said Dr. Neeraj Kumar, a senior analyst at Cognizant Insights.

How to get started

Customers interested in the new service can visit the Thomas Cook India website, log in to their account or create a new one, and click on the “Instant Forex Card” tab. The process is fully integrated with the Blinkit delivery app, so users can track the driver in real time. For corporate accounts, Thomas Cook offers a bulk‑order portal where a single corporate card can be delivered to multiple employees across different cities.

Thomas Cook also announced a limited‑time promotional offer: the first 1,000 customers to use the Blinkit‑delivered forex card will receive a ₹500 voucher that can be redeemed for a free lounge pass at any partner airport.

Looking ahead

While the immediate benefit is clear – a card in minutes – both companies are already looking at how to deepen the collaboration. Thomas Cook is evaluating the addition of a “travel‑budget” feature that will allow users to set daily spend limits on the card. Blinkit is exploring the possibility of expanding its hyper‑local delivery model to other travel essentials such as passport renewals, visa stamps and even local SIM cards.

As global mobility recovers and travellers demand instant, friction‑less services, the Thomas Cook–Blinkit partnership could become a template for how traditional travel operators harness modern logistics to win customer trust. In an era where a trip’s success can hinge on the time it takes to get a foreign‑currency card in hand, speed is no longer a luxury – it is a necessity.