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MONTREAL, Feb. 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Yanik Guillemette<\/a>, technology entrepreneur and Chair of Accolad<\/a>\u2019s External Advisory Committee on Technology and Innovation, today announced the deployment of a new automation infrastructure enabling Canadian organizations to instantly manage referral payments, sales incentives, and customer rewards through an expanded digital gift card marketplace.<\/p>\n This development marks an important milestone for Accolad, whose platform now provides access to more than 200 international digital gift cards<\/strong><\/a>, including Amazon, Walmart, Esso, Boston Pizza, and IKEA, while also promoting a strong local ecosystem featuring over 70 recognized Qu\u00e9bec-based businesses<\/strong>.<\/p>\n These include brands such as Lambert, Mia Bijoux, La Cord\u00e9e, Str\u00f8m Spa Nordique, St-Hubert, and many other Qu\u00e9bec companies, allowing organizations to balance operational simplicity with support for local commerce.<\/p>\n Automating What Was Previously Manual<\/strong><\/p>\n Historically, referral programs and commercial incentive payments relied on fragmented processes, including manual transfers, physical gift cards, heavy administrative tracking, and significant delays.<\/p>\n Accolad\u2019s new integration is designed to eliminate these operational frictions.<\/p>\n \u201cOrganizations want to reward people quickly \u2014 whether it\u2019s a referring customer, a salesperson exceeding targets, or a partner closing a transaction. Until now, these payments were surprisingly complex to manage. Our goal was to make them as simple as sending an email,\u201d said Yanik Guillemette<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The platform now enables:<\/p>\n Growing Adoption Across Travel and Insurance Industries<\/strong><\/p>\n Accolad is seeing accelerating adoption in sectors where financial incentives play a strategic role, including:<\/p>\n These organizations now use the platform to deliver digital bonuses and rewards to clients or partners, significantly simplifying administrative compliance and accounting processes.<\/p>\n \u201cIn many industries, issuing a bonus or reward remains unexpectedly complicated. Our objective is to transform these payments into an instant, traceable, and fully automated process,\u201d added Guillemette.<\/p>\n Supporting Local Economies in a Digital Environment<\/strong><\/p>\n Beyond automation, Accolad promotes a hybrid approach combining global brands with local merchants.<\/p>\n According to the company, this strategy enables organizations to offer meaningful rewards while supporting Qu\u00e9bec businesses \u2014 an increasingly important factor for employers and corporate partners.<\/p>\n Infrastructure Designed for the Relationship Economy<\/strong><\/p>\n This integration reflects a broader trend: the rise of the relationship economy, where growth increasingly depends on referrals, partnerships, and customer loyalty alongside traditional acquisition strategies.<\/p>\n Accolad positions its technology as an invisible infrastructure layer enabling large-scale automation of incentive micro-payments.<\/p>\n \u201cReferral programs and commercial incentives are becoming major growth drivers. Our role is to remove operational complexity so organizations can focus on building stronger relationships with customers and partners,\u201d concluded Yanik Guillemette<\/strong>.<\/p>\n About Accolad<\/strong><\/p>\n Accolad is a Canadian technology platform specializing in the automation of recognition programs<\/a> cards, digital rewards, and commercial incentives. The solution enables organizations to securely distribute rewards and digital payments at scale through an extensive catalogue of local and international brands.<\/p>\n Media Contact<\/strong><\/p>\n Julie Tessier\n
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Head of Communications
Accolad
Email: j.tessier@accolad.com<\/a>
Phone: 579-274-1477<\/p>\n
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