“Some go the extra mile, we go the extra billion”. Banque Libano-Française (BLF) held a reception on Tuesday July 3rd, at the Sursock Museum, to celebrate its five-year partnership with Air France KLM, and the fifth anniversary of their co-branded Visa card which has offered to date 1 Billion Miles to clients.

The celebration gathered more than 250 guests, including Mr. Walid Raphaël, Chairman General Manager of BLF, Mr. Elie Nahas, Group Chairman and General Manager of BLF, Mrs. Raya Raphaël Nahas, General Manager of BLF, as well as managers from BLF, Air France KLM and Visa International. It was launched with a short movie highlighting the milestones that marked the BLF and Air France KLM five-year partnership.

Mrs. Raya Raphaël Nahas thanked the guests for attending the “celebration of an undisputable success” and stated: “Thousands of cards were issued exceeding considerably our expectations… Today, our Visa Signature card ranks first in the Levant and second in the MENA region in terms of Average Card Spending. It also boasts the second highest expense rate among all Visa Signature cards in the region”. “Lebanon remains one of the very few countries where Air France KLM has issued a co-branded card. In the challenging times we are facing today, this partnership should reinforce our belief that Lebanon still offers great market opportunities for international groups and should grab more attention from global investors”, she added.

Mr. Frederic Babu, General Manager of Air-France KLM for the Near East, said: “Since its launching in 2013, our partnership with Banque Libano-Française has been very fruitful. The Air France KLM - Banque Libano-Française card comes in the first place in terms of number of customers and miles offered among all co-branded cards in our international markets outside France and the Netherlands”.

Mr. Marcello Baricordi, Visa International General Manager of the MENA region, then handed to the Management of BLF the “Best Airline Co-Brand Performance in Levant” award as a token of appreciation for the outstanding performance of the card.

The reception included a fashion show that showcased Air France hostesses’ uniforms from 1946 until today, and a concert by Bleu Blanc Rouge band. Moreover, Air France KLM offered 3 guests the chance to win 1,000,000 Miles to spend on trips to Paris and around the world.