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Qatar Airways CEO Will Step Down After Nearly 3 Decades Leading Carrier 

Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker. (QNA)
Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker. (QNA)
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Qatar Airways CEO Will Step Down After Nearly 3 Decades Leading Carrier 

Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker. (QNA)
Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker. (QNA)

Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker is stepping down after 27 years leading the company.

Al Baker's retirement will go into effect Nov. 5, Qatar Airways said Monday. He will be succeeded by Badr Mohammed Al-Meer — who currently serves as the chief operating officer of Hamad International Airport in Doha, the hub of Qatar's national carrier.

In Monday's announcement, Qatar Airways said that it “has grown to become one of the most recognizable and trusted brands globally” under Al Baker's leadership. The company pointed to seven “World's Best Airline” wins, among other allocates.

Al Baker was appointed CEO in 1997, three years after the airline's launch, and has been instrumental in transforming Qatar Airways into a major international carrier that competes against the likes of Dubai's Emirates and Turkish Airlines.

In July, Qatar Airways reported a profit of $1.2 billion over the last fiscal year, boosted in part by the country’s hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Qatar Airway's earned revenue of $20.9 billion over the fiscal year, up from $14.4 billion the year before.

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Türkiye Spends $12 Billion Defending Lira After Erdogan Rival’s Arrest

Protesters hold a Turkish national flag as they clash with Turkish anti riot police using tear gas and water cannons during a demonstration in support of Istanbul's arrested mayor, in Ankara on March 23, 2025. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP)
Protesters hold a Turkish national flag as they clash with Turkish anti riot police using tear gas and water cannons during a demonstration in support of Istanbul's arrested mayor, in Ankara on March 23, 2025. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP)
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Türkiye Spends $12 Billion Defending Lira After Erdogan Rival’s Arrest

Protesters hold a Turkish national flag as they clash with Turkish anti riot police using tear gas and water cannons during a demonstration in support of Istanbul's arrested mayor, in Ankara on March 23, 2025. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP)
Protesters hold a Turkish national flag as they clash with Turkish anti riot police using tear gas and water cannons during a demonstration in support of Istanbul's arrested mayor, in Ankara on March 23, 2025. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP)

Türkiye’s central bank burnt through almost $12 billion defending the lira in a record intervention after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s detention of his political rival triggered a political crisis that scared investors and sent the currency reeling.

The bank spent $11.5 billion propping up the currency on Wednesday after the detention of Istanbul’s mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, the most prominent leader in Türkiye’s political opposition, said a person with knowledge of the matter and calculations based on official data by Burumcekci Research and Consultancy, the Financial Times reported.

It said the intervention was nearly four times larger than any previous such move on the bank’s official records.

It came after the lira plunged as much as 11% against the US dollar to a record low on Wednesday as Erdogan’s move against Imamoglu ignited a stampede out of the Turkish markets.

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One Turkish banker told the Financial Times that the officials had “lost control” of the market early on Wednesday, adding it had “left a scar” on investors’ confidence.

JPMorgan Chase, a significant player in emerging market finance, also noted “lira liquidity was impaired amid large outflows” on Wednesday.

Analysts say the central bank likely continued intervening in the market on Thursday and Friday. Policymakers have taken other steps to soothe markets this week, including holding an emergency central bank meeting on Thursday in which a key overnight interest rate was increased in an attempt to keep local savers in lira accounts rather than switching to dollars.

The actions have eased the lira’s decline, leaving the currency down 3% for the week, though Istanbul’s Bist 100 share index tumbled almost 8 percent on Friday in its worst week since 2008.

On Sunday, Bloomberg said Turkish central bank officials held a “technical meeting” with commercial lenders to prepare for potential market volatility after a key opposition politician was formally arrested.

The meeting discussed “the latest developments in markets,” according to a statement from the Turkish Banks Association.