Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways posted a record profit in the first half of the year, driven by soaring demand, with future plans including the possible use of cryptocurrencies for payment as it looks to grow passenger traffic.
Net profit after tax in the period ended June rose by 32 per cent to Dh1.1 billion ($300 million), Etihad said on Wednesday. Revenue grew by 16 per cent annually to more than Dh13.5 billion, driven by a 16 per cent rise in passenger revenue to Dh11.29 billion. Cargo revenue also rose by 9 per cent annually during the six-month period.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation – a key metric for profitability – increased by nearly a quarter year on year to Dh2.7 billion.
The UAE carrier's operations have remained robust despite the uncertainty brought about by the sweeping tariffs from the US, reflected by its record performance in the first half of this year, chief executive Antonoaldo Neves told reporters.
“We have a very strong network, so the fact that we are delivering these results is a clear proof that the global economy is actually helping us,” Mr Neves told The National at a media round-table.
Etihad's network stood at 88 destinations as of June, with 27 new routes launched or announced in the last 12 months, including year-round and seasonal services.
The airline carried 10.2 million passengers in the first half, a 17 per cent annual increase, with passenger load factor improving to 87 per cent. The airline aims to carry 21.5 million passengers this year.
Mr Neves floated the possibility of this growing to 24 million or 25 million for 2026. In July, Mr Neves told The National that the airline was revising its growth targets upwards to carry 38 million passengers by 2030, from a previous goal of 33 million. Etihad carried 18.5 million passengers last year.
The airline's operating fleet exceeded 100 aircraft, and in July, it took delivery of its first Airbus A321LR, with the aircraft marking its inaugural flight last month to Phuket. As part of its expansion plans, the airline also placed an order in May for 28 Boeing wide-body aircraft, a mix of 787s and 777Xs, during US President Donald Trump's visit to Abu Dhabi.
In the January to June period, Etihad also hired more than 1,700 new employees, including more than 100 pilots and 1,000 cabin crew.
“We only see good things in spite of any global or geopolitical discussions that are going on for a very simple reason: we don't rely in any specific market,” Mr Neves said.
“We have regions that are stronger, regions that are not as strong, but one compensates for the other, and that's going to come again in two or three years; we have the ability to manoeuvre through any kind of seasonality or cyclical challenges that we face,” he added.
Mr Neves also said an initial public offering would be a “shareholders' decision”.
Crypto taking off
As part of its growth plans, Etihad plans to add cryptocurrencies as a payment option in the future, investing “a lot” in technology to close gaps in payment structures, Mr Neves said. However, the company wants to ensure that the right infrastructure is in place in the markets it serves.
“The short answer is, yes, we're going to be doing that … I believe that in the very short term, we're going to be also accepting other currencies, including Bitcoin and other cryptos,” he said.
“We need to make sure that we have the local systems in the different countries that we fly to, so that people can process their [payments] in the different local acquiring networks across the globe.”
That comes as Dubai's Emirates, along with Dubai Duty Free, in July signed an initial agreement with Crypto.com to allow customers to pay through the trading platform's payment service.
“Bitcoin and cryptos are just another currency that we need to add to our portfolio. But this is not to say we want to take the risk of holding those currencies,” Mr Neves said. “If we do, we're probably going to swap those currencies immediately. Not because the currency is going to appreciate and depreciate, but this is not our business.”
In cryptocurrencies, swapping is done for several reasons, including taking profits, avoiding market volatility, minimising taxable situations, or diversifying portfolios, according to French crypto and cyber security company Ledger.
“Our business is not to speculate on currency evaluation or depreciation. So like we do with any other currency … we try to make sure that the sooner we can we convert that into either dollars or dirhams … we're protected from currency devaluation,” Mr Neves said.
“It's not the top priority for us right now, but it's natural … to accept more currency types as means of payment.”
Etihad is also not ruling out using Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet services for its on-board Wi-Fi, but Mr Neves noted that there are other available options in the market to choose from.
“We're working very hard with that objective to provide our customers with 100Mbps in spite of the provider in about two to three years,” he said, referring to the speed touted by the service under SpaceX.
