Corporate Travel Buyers Face Perilous Exposure to Industry’s $540 Billion Debt

Company travel buyers face years of rising prices due to an industry "debt mountain" that today exceeds half a trillion dollars. According to a former travel buyer-turned-consultant, the debt totals $540 billion — a figure that mostly covers airlines, hotels, ground transportation firms and travel management companies. Some $490 billion of that amount stems from government and bank loans, plus cash injections from venture capitalists, private equity and hedge funds. Sector wise, global airline debt totals $350 billion; hotels $110 billion; ground transport companies $20 billion; and corporate travel agencies $10 billion, calculated Mark O’Brien, managing partner of Avenue5 Consulting. The debt also includes travel and mobility tech startups which have secured $48 billion in investment, mostly from venture capital firms. An estimated 2,800 companies received investments during 2021, O'Brien said. This figure was the largest amount invested in the last 10 years, and 15 percent up