SUNRATE, the global payment and treasury management platform, today announced a strategic partnership with Repayd, the specialist travel merchant account provider, at ITB Berlin 2026, the world's largest travel trade show. The collaboration brings together SUNRATE's global payment infrastructure and treasury capabilities with Repayd's specialist expertise in travel payments to support the complex payment needs of international travel businesses.

The 2025 Bwindi Chimpanzee Census has confirmed the presence of an estimated 426 chimpanzees widely distributed across Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, marking what officials describe as a major milestone in strengthening evidence based conservation in one of Africa’s most important protected landscapes.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) today reveals that US$12.5 trillion in projected Travel & Tourism investment across major economies will play a decisive role in shaping competitiveness and economic growth through to 2035.

The ITB Berlin Morning Briefing is a daily AI-powered podcast for ITB Berlin 2026 that provides a compact morning update for attendees and the press. It delivers key news, insights, and important information about what is happening at the trade fair each day. The briefing also highlights anniversary events taking place across the fairgrounds, shares updates from ITB News & Insights, and previews the main events and highlights scheduled for the day, helping listeners stay informed and prepared for the day ahead.

Minor Hotels, a leading global hotel owner and operator, has announced Avani+ Lanexang Vientiane, a design-led, premium lifestyle hotel set to open in Q2 2026. The property will become Minor Hotels’ second hotel in Laos, joining Avani+ Luang Prabang in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Luang Prabang, further reinforcing the group’s presence in one of Southeast Asia’s most culturally rich and increasingly dynamic destinations.

With the Leadership Exchange, Phocuswright and ITB Berlin have created a new, exclusive dialogue format that deliberately goes beyond traditional conference formats. In a closed circle of leading decision-makers from the travel industry, technology, investment and strategy, the focus was not on day-to-day operations but on setting the structural course for the next two decades The 90-minute gathering on Tuesday at the CityCube Berlin convened international industry representatives to discuss key issues for the future of the global travel industry. The starting point was the conviction that tourism is at a strategic turning point: technological innovations – especially in the field of AI – changing market structures, geopolitical challenges and ecological conditions are fundamentally changing value creation, competition and responsibility.