‘Clearing $800m airline funds impacted travel business’

The Group Managing Director of Finchglow Holdings, Mr. Bankole Bernard yesterday said clearing blocked funds belonging to airlines impacted on travel business.

He stated this in a chat with newsmen yesterday, disclosing that blocked funds have disappeared.

Daily Trust reports that at the peak of the trapped funds in 2023, Nigeria was owing foreign airlines over $800m which they couldn’t repatriate.

As of yesterday when the International Air Transport Association (IATA) released figure of $1.2bn blocked funds in Africa with Algeria missing, Nigeria is conspicuously missing.

Bankole stated that the improvement in Nigeria’s macroeconomic environment which gives airlines sustained access to the foreign exchange had impacted positively on the travel business.

He is however calling for a review of aviation taxes and agency charges in Nigeria, arguing that high fees are driving up airfares and limiting accessibility for passengers.

Bernard disclosed that nearly 45% of ticket costs go to taxes and charges imposed by various aviation agencies.

“If a ticket costs N1,000, only about N550 goes to the airline,” Bernard explained, urging the government to reduce levies, particularly in a market where demand already exceeds supply.

The GMD noted that Nigeria remains one of Africa’s highest aviation tax environments, with rising operational costs contributing to a 50% surge in airfares between 2022 and 2024. He also highlighted that the country’s 22 federally owned airports, many of which generate limited revenue, force the government to rely heavily on user charges.

Bernard also revealed that Finchglow is exploring expansion into Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, leveraging its aviation training school as a strategic entry point. While training is typically a low-margin venture, he emphasized its long-term value in ensuring a skilled workforce for the company and the broader aviation sector.

“The return on aviation training is not great; however, the benefits outweigh it,” he said, noting that the school could be the first arm to accompany any international expansion.

Bernard stressed Finchglow’s growing investment in technology, including AI, but noted that regulatory bodies lag behind.

“We can’t operate in isolation. You can’t talk about AI when regulators are struggling to use computers,” he said, advocating for digitisation to fully integrate modern technologies into the sector.

On passenger and staff safety, he supported reviewing digital footprints as a psychological safety measure, a practice increasingly adopted globally.

Bernard also called for more centralised and accurate aviation data, pointing out past inconsistencies in passenger numbers. Platforms like the Billing Settlement Plan (BSP) have improved reporting for passengers, and similar progress is expected for cargo operations, which he believes have astronomical growth potential.

Finchglow, established in 2006, has subsidiaries including Finchglow Travels, FCM Nigeria, Finchglow Holidays, Travelden, and its aviation training school. The group specialises in travel management, corporate travel solutions, tourism services, and capacity development, and is a top performer on airline platforms such as IATA BSP.

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