PETALING JAYA: AirAsia Group Bhd yesterday revealed that Thai AirAsia’s largest shareholder Asia Aviation Public Co Ltd approved a restructuring plan which entails the listing of the carrier on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) for a loan of up to 3.15 billion baht (RM410 million) from a new investor.
According to a SET filing, the new investor, who is not a connected to Asia Aviation and Thai AirAsia, will provide the loan with no interest charged, in the form of a convertible loan agreement or convertible bond with the right to convert it to ordinary shares of Thai AirAsia with a three-year term. It stated that the two parties have agreed on a conversion price of 20.4 baht per share.
AirAsia revealed that should the conversion not materialise regardless of the reason, the investor will remain as a creditor and the loan or bond will have an interest of 3% per annum.
Currently, the investor is conducting due diligence on Thai AirAsia and it is expected to be completed mid-May 2021.
Asia Aviation stated that the investor intends to invest in Thai AirAsia rather than invest through holding shares in Asia Aviation, as Thai AirAsia is the operating company and has received various licences to directly operate its airline business. Furthermore, as shareholders of Thai AirAsia, the investor will receive dividends directly from Thai AirAsia, not by payment of dividends through the holding company.
It added that listing Thai AirAsia as the listed company on SET in place of Asia Aviation will increase the opportunities for Thai AirAsia to raise funds by itself rather than being dependent on the holding company for fundraising.
Asia Aviation opined that the shareholders should pass a resolution to dissolve and liquidate the company so it could allocate the assets of Thai AirAsia. However, it pointed out that Asia Aviation’s board has yet to approve of such a measure.
After it goes public, the new investor is estimated to hold a 11.4% equity stake in the carrier.
