Flight plan to profit: Navigating beyond the air travel boom

Centralised treasury models, payment innovations, sustainable practices and integrated retail can each play a role in transforming financial performance.

7 July 2025

9 mins

Corporate & investment bankingTransaction bankingTreasury

Pre-flight briefing: The profitability challenge

The airline industry is on track to exceed USD1 trillion in global revenues this year, demonstrating a robust recovery following the pandemic. Yet profitability remains challenging, constrained by escalating fuel costs, persistent inflation, and operational inefficiencies. While advancements in personalisation of services, digital booking and smarter loyalty programs bolster growth, treasury operations are emerging as the linchpin for financial stability. For treasury professionals, the opportunities are clear: optimise liquidity and cash buffer, reduce transaction costs, and align with revenue strategies to fortify airlines against a volatile market. So, how can this be done? Centralised treasury models, payment innovations, sustainable practices and integrated retail approaches can each play a role in transforming financial performance.

Flight command: Centralising cash flow

Airlines generate substantial daily cash inflows from ticket sales, ancillary fees, and inflight transactions, yet fragmented management across multiple accounts, currencies, and markets often undermines liquidity. Decentralised treasury structures – subject to local banking challenges, currency controls and fluctuations – create visibility gaps, idle balances and hamper effective deployment of surplus cash. Centralising treasury operations consolidates these pools, reducing operational complexity and minimising the need for costly short-term borrowing.

A key enabler of this transformation is the rationalisation of banking relationships and account structures. Airlines often maintain multiple banking relationships across markets, leading to numerous accounts, higher fees, and operational overheads. By reducing the number of physical accounts, airlines can improve cash visibility, reduce administrative burden, and lower banking costs. Virtual accounts can be pivotal here – not only do they help speed up reconciliation by identifying payers associated to an unique virtual account number, but they also enable treasurers to monitor and allocate funds without establishing physical accounts in every market. This results in streamlined operations and enhanced liquidity management.

Foreign exchange (FX) management presents another critical opportunity, particularly in fuel cost optimisation. Aviation fuel, priced in USD, is one of the largest operating expense for airlines. However, revenue collected is often in multiple currencies, exposing airlines to FX volatility. By leveraging centralised cash management and technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), airlines can forecast cash flow and currency mismatches more accurately and implement proactive hedging strategies to stabilise costs. Furthermore, solutions such as SC PrismFX offer a way to automate FX flows through a centralised payment process, which expands the current outreach, increases the efficiency in reaching beneficiaries, and optimises cash balances, leading to simplification and overall costs savings.

Jetstream journeys: Modernising payments

Airlines process millions of transactions daily, yet legacy payment systems exact a steep toll. Value-based transaction fees, often reaching 2 to 3 per cent per ticket, erode margins, while settlement delays, sometimes spanning days, strain cash flow. Innovative solutions are now reshaping this landscape.

IATA Pay, developed by the International Air Transport Association, in collaboration with Standard Chartered across select markets such as Vietnam and India, leverages on instant payments such as VietQR and Unified Payments Interface (UPI) to facilitate eCommerce sales with near instant, low-cost transactions. By eliminating the need to pay acquiring fees to card acquirers, participating airlines are able to generate significant savings on payment processing fees of up to 99 per cent. Airlines are also adopting alternative payment options such as Net Banking and Request-to-Pay, integrating these – alongside IATA Pay – into one-stop collection gateways such as Standard Chartered’s Straight2Bank Pay. This platform supports real-time account-to-account (A2A) payments, QR code payments and e-wallet transactions, enhancing the customer experience, accelerating settlement, and reducing reliance on traditional card networks for greater payment resilience and cost efficiency.

Blockchain technology offers another avenue to enhance efficiency and improve resilience, particularly for cross-border payments. By eliminating intermediaries, it enables real-time transfers with minimal fees, a boon for airlines navigating multiple jurisdictions. Partior, a blockchain-based payment network is designed to enable instant, 24/7 cross-border settlements in multiple currencies. Already supporting real-time settlement in USD, EUR, and SGD, the platform can help airlines minimise forex losses from exchange fluctuations and cut intermediary bank fees, significantly improving financial efficiency.

Innovative approaches: Investing in more sustainable outcomes

Aviation can play a critical role in the energy transition if it embraces the opportunity to pursue greater sustainability as a sector. Whether it is investment related to more fuel-efficient aircraft, Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), or carbon offsets, the industry is faced with a number of new options to consider. SAF, derived from renewable sources, offers a lower-carbon alternative to traditional jet fuel, helping airlines meet regulatory mandates and consumer demand for greener travel. However, its higher production costs and limited supply mean that innovative financial strategies can help to make adoption viable.

Partnerships such as Standard Chartered and DHL Express’ SAF initiative, British Airways’ involvement in financing for carbon removal projects or Malaysia Airport’s sustainable Islamic supplier financing, highlight how innovative financial solutions can support more sustainable, socially responsible and cost-stable aviation strategies.

By integrating sustainability considerations into treasury planning, airlines can better leverage centralised pools to fund bulk purchases or secure long-term supply agreements, mitigating price volatility.

“We are committed to finding innovative financial solutions that can support our clients as part of the collective efforts to achieve net zero”.

Sofia Hammoucha, Global Head, Trade and Working Capital, Standard Chartered

Clearer skies: Linking treasury to retail

Treasury optimisation extends well beyond cost management. It can also amplify revenue through ancillary offerings and innovative business models. Ancillary services such as seat upgrades, lounge access, baggage fees, and in-flight dining – bundled with ticket purchases – drive per-passenger yields. McKinsey estimates these retailing innovations could generate USD45 billion industry-wide by 2030.

Airlines are also increasingly adopting marketplace models, expanding into digital platforms that aggregate travel-related services to deliver personalised, seamless offerings, boosting ancillary revenue and deepening engagement. For example, AirAsia’s super app integrates flights with hotel bookings, ride-hailing, and food delivery, while others explore in-flight marketplaces for duty-free shopping or entertainment upgrades. These efforts can account for up to 20 to 30 per cent of total earnings, redefining airlines as one-stop travel hubs rather than just transportation providers.

Real-time payment systems are critical to this shift, ensuring swift revenue capture from ancillaries and marketplace sales. Innovations like Standard Chartered’s Payout-as-a-Service (PaaS) automate complex payouts – such as split payments to hotel partners or scheduled disbursements for in-flight sales – reducing costs and enhancing cash flow. AI complements these solutions by analysing demand patterns and customer preferences to dynamically adjust fares and ancillary offers, such as premium seats priced higher during peak seasons or discounted hotel bundles to clear inventory.

Treasury professionals are increasingly playing a strategic role here, collaborating with commercial teams to align liquidity with these growth opportunities. Marketplace models may require upfront investments in platforms or partnerships, demanding flexible cash reserves. By linking financial and retail strategies, airlines turn ancillary revenue into a competitive edge, strengthening resilience and profitability.

“Airlines operate in a high-stakes environment, where margins remain tight even in times of surging demand. With air travel booming, the focus must shift from survival to sustainable profitability – and their partner banks have a role to play in that.”

Ankur Kanwar, Head of Transaction Banking & Cash Management, Singapore & ASEAN, Global Head of Cash Structured Solutions Development at Standard Chartered

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The tools to achieve more sustainable profitability already exist. Centralised treasury management boosts cash visibility,  liquidity, and decision-making , while cutting borrowing costs. Payment innovations such as  IATA Pay and Partior streamline transactions, reduce costs, and accelerate cash cycles. Sustainability, woven into treasury strategies through investments like SAF, can help balance profitability with the pursuit of environmental goals. Meanwhile, maturing retail strategies and marketplace models unlock new revenue streams and deepen passenger engagement.  

For treasury and finance leaders, the blueprint forward is clear: Leverage these innovations now to drive sustainable profitability into tomorrow. Airlines that act decisively today won’t just keep pace, they’ll lead the industry to stronger margins and long-term success as aviation soars to new heights.