By DAMIAN FRANCIS, Editorial Director
Before we get into this week’s Wrap, today marks the 111th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings.
On the 25th of April 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula. They became known as Anzacs and the pride they took in that name continues to this day.
I would like to take a moment to acknowledge this.
Lest we forget.
Should you throw somebody you work with, or have worked with, under the bus?
In an industry that is generally looked upon as one of the friendliest around despite the tough times it has recently been through and the rude health which it has achieved, it tends to turn heads when an individual is publicly thrust into the spotlight for negative reasons.
Just think about the amount of awards this industry runs to celebrate individual and group success. From network awards to supplier awards to industry organisations, travel takes every opportunity to give itself and its people a pat on the back.
Until it doesn’t.
“Following the detection of the Differences Amount by CTM, the exercise undertaken by CTM in 2023 was compromised because of (a) omissions and misunderstandings regarding the facts and contract terms in place with the customer; and (b) conduct by the Former UK CEO. This led to misrepresentations (by the Former UK CEO) to the customer regarding the Differences Amount and the refund of part of it.”
This was just one part of the seven-page document from Corporate Travel Management (ASX: CTD) providing the latest update on the serious financial issues it faces which have, among other things, resulted in it being paused on the ASX.
In that update, it mentioned “former UK CEO” nine times across those seven pages.
If you haven’t read our coverage or caught up with the CTM situation in general, here is the briefest summary to get you up to speed.
CTM uncovered a serious financial crisis centred on historic accounting failures in its UK business in late 2022 when Deloitte audits flagged potential revenue‑recognition errors on large government and corporate contracts.
Mainstream media reported the major client involved was the British Government.
CTM’s board engaged KPMG to conduct a forensic review which led to the suspension of CTM shares in August 2025 and the withdrawal of earnings guidance as financial statements were delayed and senior UK management exited.
In its latest statement, CTM disclosed that KPMG’s expanded forensic work identified further affected contracts dating back to 2019, lifting the expected cumulative revenue reversal to up to £118 million, with a possible additional £10 million tied to early FY26, reflecting deeper‑than‑expected failures but still limited to the UK business.
Originally, it was thought that the reversal would be around £77.6 million.
It’s arguably the biggest story of the last six months, if not the last year.
Going back to my initial point, the latest update included nine mentions of the former UK CEO, largely highlighting issues.
They are never mentioned by name. While it is common knowledge, we will stick to that style here as well.
It was interesting to note that the trade media avoided this story like the plague when the latest statement was published, despite following the CTM story relatively closely.
Travel Daily published a breaker and ran the story on page two on Wednesday, but that was about it. The mainstream media, on the other hand, didn’t hold back.
The Australian Financial Review‘s Chanticleer column in particular made it clear in no uncertain terms where it stood on the bus question.
It wrote that “throwing [them] under the bus so violently is frankly a bit too convenient…”.
“Why, given the apparent concerns about potential overcharging of customers from late 2022, was so much trust put in [them] to negotiate a deal with the British government?”
It stuck the boot in further at the end of the detailed piece.
“Corporate Travel might want to pin this mess on one bad apple, but the growing scale of this rip-off – and the governance, risk and accountability failures that allowed it to happen – will surely make anyone wary of dealing with Corporate for a long, long time.”
Even the ABC questioned the positioning, particularly being that the issue spanned a seven-year period.
“Corporate Travel painted only the UK executive as being behind problems, but added it was improving financial controls and conducting a review for a ‘broader uplift’ in areas including governance,” it reported, before going to expert Tony O’Connor for his thoughts.
“How do you keep doing that on that scale if it’s just you?” he asked the ABC.
From a reputational perspective, was it the right move to make the “former UK CEO” the star of the show… or statement?
Chris Savage, owner of The Savage Company and former CEO of Ogilvy PR Australia saw some sense in it.
“I am ok with the strategy and comms they have done,” he admitted.
“Yes, the release and positioning throws the former UK CEO under the bus, but by all [allegations] that is exactly where they need to be.”
Savage suggested to me that from an issues management and crisis management perspective, CTM’s release was “pretty good” and provided a lot of disclosure, which in turn showed the board had brought in the experts, was willing to provide full accountability, and was able to detail communications with those impacted.
While he also said that CTM clearly needed “stronger checks and balances, they acknowledge that and have taken action to resolve and fix it”.
“Spotlighting the CEO as the main cause is frankly a good plan, particularly if it is true,” Savage said.
Another expert in the communication world saw it slightly differently.
Pure Public Relations founder Phoebe Netto emphasised to me that any time room is left for “speculation, passionate commentary, obscurity or questions”, people will fill it with negatives.
She jumped on Savage’s point about stronger checks and balances being required, though.
“While the company has alleged misconduct by a former UK executive, this situation ultimately raises broader questions about governance, oversight and internal controls at a listed company level.”
Netto went on to say that while it was a very pointed statement leaving no doubt who the business was suggesting was at fault, “the facts they themselves disclose point to systematic failure”, which makes “the ‘bad actor’ narrative feel incomplete at best”.
She said firmly that it didn’t contain the issue, but rather expanded the surface area for scrutiny.
The Chanticleer column would suggest she is correct, but the counter argument is that the AFR is a dog on a leash, old-school investigative journalism and opinion-writing at its best, and will go out for the kill regardless of a red flag waving in front of the bull or not.
ABC’s article, however, leaves less doubt.
There is more to play out in this situation. While CTM will be working furiously with its new C-suite to lift the trading pause on the ASX, it will also be working furiously to continue to push forward on the conversations with affected clients and make-goods while managing cash flow.
And then there is the former UK CEO. What will their next move be?
The story is so deep and amazing it almost reads like a movie script.
“Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives.”
The rest of the week…
It was breaker-light this week, with only one other surfacing outside of the above topic.
Intrepid announced its largest-ever acquisition, taking on French adventure travel company Altaï Group.
Lyon-headquartered Altaï Group specialises in nature-based, active small group experiences through several brands including Atalante, Altaï Travel, Copines de Voyage, and Les Aventureurs.
In other news, the Australian Travel Industry Association (ATIA) hosted a record-breaking webinar yesterday afternoon to address the RBA surcharge ban.
More than 700 travel professionals tuned into the session, which aimed to demystify the RBA changes as well as provide tools to adopt once the ban starts on 01 October.
Mint Payments CEO Alex Teoh co-hosted the webinar, outlining the steps that the company has taken to support the industry and offered practical tips for agents.
WTAAA warned that inconsistent and opaque surcharge practices were eroding consumer trust at a time when clarity mattered most.
Airline-imposed surcharges, often coded as ‘YQ’ or ‘YR’ on a ticket, were originally associated with fuel cost recovery but are now used more broadly by some carriers, WTAAA highlighted.
And Expedia Group announced the closure of its Australian-based travel site, Lastminute.com.au, effective from 02 Jun.
The site was first launched in 2000 as a joint-venture between the UK iteration of lastminute.com and travel.com.au, before the latter spent $4.75 million in 2007 to take full control.
A year later, Wotif acquired travel.com.au for $57 million, beating out rival Webjet, before Expedia acquired Wotif in 2014.
According to the website, existing bookings will not be affected, and customers will still be able to modify or cancel their reservations through the site.
In cruise news, ships stuck in the Arabian Gulf have finally escaped through the Strait of Hormuz, after almost 50 days trapped.
MSC Cruises confirmed its MSC Euribia departed her docked location in Dubai and safely transited through the Strait over the weekend.
Celestyal Cruises’ two ships, Celestyal Discovery and Celestyal Journey, also exited the Arabian Gulf, following an almost two-month period during which the line had to cancel the start of its European season.
And AmaWaterways has announced it will operate more than 50 ships by 2032, in the cruise line’s largest growth investment to date. The expansion plans aim to reinforce its leadership in river cruising amid strong global demand for the sector.
That’s a wrap for this week.
Damian Francis
Editorial director
[email protected]
