The International Air Transport Association (IATA) will organize on October 28 and 29 in Macau (China) a joint edition of the World Financial Symposium (WFS) and the World Passenger Symposium (WPS). This double meeting will bring together senior officials and leaders of air transport to discuss the evolution of the business and the traveler experience, under the slogan "From Vision to Value: The New Era of Air Travel."
During the sessions, decisive technologies such as artificial intelligence, digital payment solutions, biometric identity, and the modernization of the retail sales model will be examined to see how they are redefining the operation of airlines.
As emphasized by the interim director general and chief financial officer of IATA, Sandrine Le Borgne, the essential purpose of the forum is to convert this technological potential into tangible value to enhance operational efficiency and financial performance in the air sector.
The program will open with speeches from Le Borgne herself and the president of the Civil Aviation Authority of Macau, Stanley Pun. Following that, the economic outlook for the industry prepared by IATA will be presented, along with the results of its Global Passenger Survey 2026.
The conferences will be structured around three main blocks: the design of offers and order management through AI, the management of financial risks and costs associated with payment processing in airlines, and the expansion of the use of digital identity to streamline border crossings and check-in processes, while simultaneously improving accessibility for users.
The Chinese market will also play a central role, with specific panels in which executives from airlines in the country will explain how digital innovation and the adoption of initiatives like "One ID" are promoting the expansion of air transport in this region.
Among the already confirmed speakers are executives from international companies such as Hainan Airlines, Lufthansa Group, Air India, Kenya Airways, Air France/KLM, and the European agency Frontex.