Airbnb Moves Into Fintech With a Cancel-for-Any-Reason Feature

Airbnb has introduced its first foray into travel fintech with a feature that lets guests pay for the option to cancel a stay for a full refund up to 24 hours before check-in. 

The feature, called the extended cancellation option, is currently available in 12 countries including the U.S., Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, and several others. Eligible hosts need to opt out rather than opt in and most listings with moderate, limited, firm, or strict cancellation policies get automatically enrolled. Airbnb didn’t disclose the amount of the fee, which guests can pay at booking.

Airbnb is working with a third party in powering the feature but wouldn’t identify the partner.

There hasn’t been a public announcement about the new feature, but Airbnb