German tourism firm FTI Touristik is blaming a fall in booking figures and a liquidity squeeze for its decision to file for insolvency.
FTI Touristik filed for insolvency on 3 June, and it states that other group companies are expected to follow. The company claims to be the third-largest tour operator in Europe.
“In general, all services booked with the travel provider [FTI Touristik] are affected,” it states, among them the FTI companies in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands. The situation also encompasses BigXtra Touristik and car-hire firms.
But services booked with third-party providers such as TUI and Alltours, via FTI-operated websites, are not affected.
FTI Group had been under financial pressure and revealed an agreement in April under which its entire share capital would be taken over, for a token sum, by a consortium led by investment firm Certares.
Under this agreement FTI would receive a capital injection of €125 million to support growth and digital transformation.
FTI Group had claimed it was “uniquely positioned for future growth and profitability” as a result.
But FTI Touristik says that the investor process has been “lengthy and complex” and that, despite the agreement, booking figures have since “fallen well short of expectations”.
“Numerous suppliers have insisted on advance payment,” it adds. “As a result, there was an increased need for liquidity which could no longer be bridged until the closing of the investor process.”
Filing for insolvency, it states, has “therefore become necessary”. The filing has been made with a court in Munich.
“Supporting travellers affected by the consequences of the insolvency is now a top priority for the FTI Group,” says FTI Touristik.
“We are currently working hard to ensure that trips that have already started can be completed as planned.”
German carrier Condor, one of several carriers used for FTI holiday operations, says it is “not allowed to transport travellers” who have booked packages with the affected FTI brands.
“However, all guests can take their booked return flight as normal, even if the trip was cancelled by FTI.”
The tourism firm also used airlines including SunExpress and Eurowings.
FTI Touristik says trips which had not already started by 4 June will “probably no longer be possible” or “only partially possible”.
