IATA's WFS to be held in Doha in September; to focus on reshaping airline resilience

Financial leaders from the aviation industry and its supply chain partners will gather here for the eighth edition of the World Financial Symposium (WFS), organised by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), from September 19-22.

The event, for which Qatar Airways plays the host airline, will focus on reshaping airline resilience. Following the greatest shock to aviation in history, the industry is emerging rapidly from the pandemic and government-mandated travel restrictions of the past two years.Industry losses are expected to reduce to $9.7bn this year from nearly $180bn in red ink in 2020-21. As travel barriers fall in most regions, very strong demand is supporting expectations for a recovery to pre-Covid-19 traffic levels by 2024, with profitability a possibility in 2023.At the same time airline debt levels have soared as carriers borrowed to stay aloft during the crisis. And finance departments across the industry will face challenges as the industry achieves its 2050 fly net zero commitment.“Airlines are resilient. Now is the time to build on the hard work and difficult restructurings of the past two years to seize opportunities coming out of the crisis. Finance will play a vital role in supporting the ongoing recovery while creating a sustainable capital structure to support our ambitious environment agenda,” said Willie Walsh, IATA director general.Qatar Airways Group chief executive, HE Akbar al-Baker, said: “We are honoured to be hosting the first in-person WFS since 2019 during our milestone 25th year of operations."This vital symposium will bring together financial leaders from airlines and many supply chain partners to discuss and debate the path forward and the challenges to be overcome, he said.The sessions would address environmental, social and governance reporting and sustainable finance trends, financial risk management, the future of airline payments and payments as a value creator and fulfillment and settlement in a world of airline offers and orders.