Nigeria: Payments Cost Airlines $24.5bn in 2025 - Report

What the report says

The International Air Transport Association has released new global data showing that airlines spent $24.5 billion in payment processing costs in 2025 to handle $1.05 trillion in sales, according to the report distributed by AllAfrica from This Day. The figures are presented as evidence that the cost of airline ticket payments is rising faster than industry revenue growth, adding pressure to an already low-margin business.

IATA said the 2025 payment bill was 10.4% higher than in 2023, while travel sales over the same period rose 7.7% from $977 billion. The association said the average cost per transaction was $5 per passenger, compared with a forecast net profit of $4.50 per passenger for airlines in 2026. It also broke down the costs into fees tied to transactions, operating expenses linked to payment systems and compliance, and losses from fraud or uncollected sales.

The report said cards accounted for the highest average payment fees, while some lower-cost options were far cheaper. IATA said it is promoting alternative payment methods, including local instant payment options and digital wallets, as well as its own payment platforms, IATA Pay and IATA Financial Gateway. It said broader payment choices could also reduce failed ancillary purchases, which matter because airlines earn significant extra revenue from add-on sales.