Currency Matters newsletter is back!

After a long hiatus, the Currency Matters newsletter is back and will be produced once per quarter every January, April, July and October. The Newsletter will be distributed via email in HTML format and will provide regular updates from IATA on its Currency Clearance Service (ICCS) and Currency Coordination activities and cover other subjects of interest to the airline treasury community. Happy reading and feel free to send us your comments and suggestions! Contact us     2010 IATA Treasury Conference Sign up now! This year's event will take place on October 11 and 12 in Geneva, Switzerland. Delegate and Exhibitor registration is well under way and we encourage Members to register as soon as possible. The hotel room block is being held until September 9. Read more     ICCS User Training Session ICCS has begun to host regular webinars for new ICCS Members and new staff of existing Members. So far several successful sessions have been held, the last on 23 June with 9 participants from various countries. In addition to being held regularly, these training sessions are also available on request. Should you or your team wish to attend a webinar on ICCS or CitiDirect please contact us.     General Sales Agent Sales thru ICCS – Reminder! ICCS users can further centralize the receipt of their world-wide sales proceeds by adding their non-BSP General Sales Agent (GSA) sales proceeds to flow through ICCS. Once IATA confirms receipt of the funds from the airline's relevant GSA, the funds will be processed via ICCS in the next possible ICCS Clearance Cycle. Read more     Ad-hoc Foreign Exchange Dealing A pilot project will be launched where ICCS user airlines can book foreign exchange contracts via ICCS for their trading needs outside the regular conversion of BSP/CASS sales proceeds. This would be applicable only to the main ICCS currencies handled (28), using the FXBenchmark market rates, which are based on live Interbank midpoint rates. For more details please contact Tony Pietrangelo.     ICCS' Accelerated Settlement Option Do you want to receive your ICCS funds quicker and have no need for FX conversions or changing your standard instructions on every settlement period? If yes, then ICCS' Accelerated Settlement option is for you! Read more     Did you know? ICCS Country Forms: The ICCS forms for adding new countries (BSPs/CASSes) are now available on our Members Private Page. ICCS Operations Calendars: In response to Members' requests, we have worked toward a system whereby we can make the ICCS Operations Calendars available to you at least 3 months in advance, available on our Members Private Page. Read more     IATA Emission Trading Course: Carbon Trading for Aviation One of the newest hot topics for airline financial executives is the European Union's Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS). In response to this new legislation, IATA has created an Emission Trading course to assist airlines in understanding the implications and plan accordingly. The first course will be held in Geneva, 20-21 September 2010. Register now! Read more     Currency Corner This part of the newsletter discusses funds repatriation delays and other issues faced by Airlines world-wide. It is a summary of the workings of IATA's Currency Coordination activities. The IATA Currency Coordination Working Group (ICWG) held a meeting on 7 May 2010 in the IATA offices in Geneva. The next ICWG meeting will take place during IATA's Airline Industry Treasury Conference, which in the IATA offices in Geneva on 12 October 2010. Read more     Country Specific Updates Algeria: Transfer of local sales takes 2 to 3 months. Funds eligible for remittance only consist of flown revenue – not sales, not MCO's/PTA's, not penalties for no shows, not revenues from holiday packages, etc. Airlines cannot repatriate the ticket taxes they have collected on sales made in Algeria but relating to overseas destination points, which they need to pay outside Algeria. Read more Angola: There is a general lack of foreign exchange and repatriation procedures are cumbersome. IATA is investigating the possibility of ICCS and the ability of airlines to make payments in local currency. Eritrea: There is a general lack of foreign exchange in Eritrea. IATA Currency Coordination is checking on the possibility of paying for local charges in local currency. We will continue to liaise with the affected carriers and the Country Manager East Africa on possible approaches to alleviate the situation. Ethiopia: There is a lack of hard currency, as well as, cumbersome repatriation procedures. A local airline committee co-chaired by Kenya Airways and KLM, has put forth the goals of the ability to open USD bank accounts, 100% repatriations before checks and eliminating remittance delays. IATA has had several meetings with the National Bank of Ethiopia regarding these goals and will continue to follow up. Read more Iran: Aside from sanctions there are no further issues in Iran at this time. Read more Iraq: Iraq is not a problem at this time; however there is concern as use of local currency grows, that it may become an issue. Read more Libia: Repatriation times have decreased to an average of 2 months, dropping Libya off the list of ICWG countries. Any carriers experiencing delays are encouraged to contact the Civil Aviation Authority Directly. Read more Malawi:There is a general lack of foreign currency in Malawi. ICCS was implemented in September of 2009 and receives funds from the BSP on average 40 days after the BSP settlement date. The airlines have confirmed that the situation in Malawi is better with ICCS than without ICCS, however IATA must continue to push the BSP Clearing Bank for further improvements. Nigeria: In Nigeria, Airlines were experiencing cumbersome repatriation procedures resulting in delays of 4 to 5 months. ICCS was implemented in March on a pilot basis subject to review by the NCAA in May. Carriers using ICCS in Nigeria must submit an audit statement to the NCAA every three months. If this is not received then the BSP will withhold funds until the correct documentation has been received. Sudan: There is a general lack of foreign exchange in Sudan. A letter was sent to the Central Bank of Sudan by IATA on 17 June requesting the allocation of hard currency toward airline applications for repatriation. IATA is continuing to follow up with the Central Bank. Syria: The situation has improved in Syria and funds are received in less than 2 months, dropping Syria off the list of ICWG countries. As of 1 May, sales in both USD and SYP became effective and the BSP amended settlements to include both. Venezuela: IATA has had many high level meetings with the Central Bank (BCV) and CADIVI since July 2009 resulting in increased approvals since that time. Read more     To Contact IATA's Cash Management Services Team ICCS Account Manager (customer service queries) Amy Barnes barnesa@iata.org | tel: +41 22 770 2757 ICCS Operations department Renata Oleksik, Martin Kaluschke, Daniel Arias iccs.operations@iata.org | tel: +41 22 770 2500 Financial Administration (quarterly statement queries) Lise Gagnon gagnonl@iata.org | tel: +1 514 390 6801 Business Development & Management Tony Pietrangelo pietranget@iata.org | tel: +1 514 390 6801   This issue is also available on our website.