The joint IATA World Financial Symposium and IATA World Passenger Symposium event is where airline retailing, finance and passenger experience unite to create a dynamic platform for strategic exploration, actionable insights, and transformative innovation. The next edition of WFS & WPS will be held in Bangkok, Thailand. Details will be provided in Q1 2024.
About the World Financial Symposium
The World Financial Symposium (WFS) 2023 offered plenary sessions and specialized streams on the airlines financial sustainability.
About the World Passenger Symposium
The World Passenger Symposium (WPS) combines the former Digital and Data and Retailing Symposium, the Global Airport and Passenger Symposium and the Accessibility Symposium into a single event to reflect the importance and connectedness of all three elements to the customer experience.
Why should you attend?
- Exclusive insights from industry representatives on challenges and opportunities in the airline industry
- Great industry intelligence and news of upcoming trends in airline industry
- Meeting opportunities with industry decision makers
- Network with a variety of industry representatives
- Knowledge sharing
The program will follow soon.
Who will you meet?
- A diverse set of delegates including airline representatives, services and solutions providers, delegates from finance, retailing and the banking sector, consultancy firms, start-ups, fin-techs, etc.
- Over 100 individual airlines.
- Over 100 IATA strategic partners
- Over 70 sponsors and exhibitors
Testimonials from past attendees of WFS & WPS:
"We were excited to be part of the first-ever digital journey. The WFS/WPS is a key event for shaping the future of the industry! Great food for thought and networking opportunities. A must to join!"
Ursula Silling, CEO, Branchspace
"I recommend the Symposium for all regulators. The Accessibility Track for instance has provided valuable information on the regulation of the topic, which can be used to promote international standardization."
Alexandre Carneiro, Standards Advisor, ANAC Brazil
"Excellently organized and carried out event, as usual. Networking and plenary sessions were helpful in staying ahead."
Mahesh Vengurlekar, VP of Product Engineering, Accelya Solutions
"An event that every stakeholder in aviation should attend and yield the benefits. Brainstorming sessions, debates, and seminars, besides the networking opportunities, are a must for the people in aviation."
Kabeer Yousuf, Senior Journalist, Oman Observer Daily Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
"The event has been a crucial milestone in bringing the industry together and accelerating the journey towards airline retailing."
Aras Kubilay, Business Development Director, Hitit
"An absolute must-attend symposium for anyone in Commercial, Distribution, Passenger Experience or Accessibility. Best speakers from across the world, and the best commercial leaders sharing their experiences. Great learning opportunity."
Vikas Manra, Head of Global Business Development & Distribution, Gulf Air
The WFS-WPS 2024 Program will be announced soon.
Showcase your products and services to industry leaders, governments, international organizations, and subject matter experts. For information on sponsorship and exhibition opportunities at the World Financial and World Passenger Symposiums, please complete the form, and a member of our team will be in touch.
Bangkok
Thailand’s biggest city, Bangkok, embraces a seamless fusion of tradition and modernity through its historic landmarks, and vibrant metropolis. With its rich cultural tapestry and thriving urban spirit, Bangkok promises an unforgettable backdrop for the 2024 symposium’s discussions and networking. Participants can expect to witness the city's pulsating energy, whether strolling through vibrant markets, taking a boat ride along the canals, or indulging in the country’s renowned world-famous cuisine.
> Weather in Bangkok
> More information about Bangkok
Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld
Centara Grand at CentralWorld is located in the very heart of Bangkok’s shopping and business district. Easily accessible by car and via the BTS SkyTrain, this five-star hotel is the flagship of Centara Hotels & Resorts as it is ideal for those who would like to shop, sightsee or do business. With 55 storeys, the hotel offers spectacular city views from its guestrooms and restaurants, providing a satisfying blend of city living with resort-style facilities.
> Find information on passport, visa & health requirements through the IATA Travel Centre.
World Financial Symposium (WFS) & World Passenger Symposium (WPS) 2023
The joint IATA World Finance Symposium (WFS) and IATA World Passenger Symposium (WPS) is where airline retailing, finance and passenger experience unite to create a dynamic platform for strategic exploration, actionable insights, and transformative innovation. A successful WFS & WPS brought some 600 delegates to Chicago from 25 October to 26 October 2023.
- View photos
- View program
- View presentations & recorded sessions
- View sponsors
World Financial Symposium (WFS) 2022
The World Financial Symposium took place in Doha, Qatar from 19 to 21 September 2022. The theme was "reshaping airline resilience," following the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis. The goal: "Fly Net Zero - to achieve net zero carbon by 2050," by gaining agility in this less favorable landscape through retail and financial digital transformation.
- View photos
- View recorded sessions
World Financial Symposium (WFS) 2021
This special virtual edition of WFS took place on 19 - 20 October 2021. WFS 2021 offered several tracks that tackled various financial and related topics, with the objective of finding solutions to overcome challenges and seize opportunities to build airline finance for the future.
- View recorded sessions
World Financial Symposium (WFS) 2019
"Shaping a Sustainable Future Together" was the theme for WFS 2019.
- View photos
- View recorded sessions
World Passenger Symposium (WPS) 2022
The IATA World Passenger Symposium (WPS) took place in Manama, Bahrain on 01 – 03 November 2022 at the Gulf Hotel Bahrain, kindly hosted by Gulf Air. Under the theme “Unlocking Value Creation by Putting the Customer First,” the WPS 2022 looked at how the industry can deliver the best experience to its customers.
- View photos
- View presentations
Digital, Data and Retailing Symposium (DDR) 2021
In 2021, the Airline Industry Retailing Symposium (AIRS) and the Aviation Data Symposium (ADS) were held at the same time and place under a brand-new name: Digital, Data and Retailing Symposium (DDR). The focus was on the industry restart plan and how Airlines can further reduce costs and plan for new revenue generation using the power of Data and Retailing.
DDR Symposium 2021 covered key industry topics and allowed 650+ industry players to engage in a hybrid format to drive the industry recovery. Over 450 industry leaders and experts were in Madrid meeting face to face, while over 150 following the event remotely.
- View photos
- View recorded sessions
IATA Global Accessibility Symposium (IGAS) 2020
The 2nd edition of the IATA Global Accessibility Symposium took place on 27-28 October 2020. The 2020 edition informed industry stakeholders, passengers and state regulators about the efforts driven by the aviation industry in 2020.
Such efforts included: Recommendations for accessible air travel in response to COVID-19, innovative trends in the technology area, an overview of existing and upcoming policy and regulation, practical considerations on accessibility hot topics, and the future of accessibility and innovation - connecting the dots.
- View recorded sessions
IATA Global Airport & Passenger Symposium (GAPS) 2019
IATA Global Airport & Passenger Symposium (GAPS) examines the processes that touch the passenger journey, on the ground and in the air, and impact releated airport processes and operations, allowing delegates to collectively shape future solutions through panel discussions, and innovation sessions, and partake in the development of the future passenger journey storyline.
The 2019 edition took place on 15-17 October in Warsaw, Poland, and addressed the impact of exisiting processes in the passenger journey and explore how future needs, trends, and solutions will shape the way of travel. Sub-themes included: "the seamless journey," "the transforming airport," and "the world of interactive data."
- View photos
- View "The Seamless Journey" presentations (pdf)
Our Diversity & Inclusion Pledge
IATA believes that diversity of culture, gender, age, orientation and experience boosts the success of the aviation industry. We actively encourage aviation professionals with diverse profiles to contribute to our events as speakers, panelists, facilitators, or in any other way.
