AirAsia considers IPO for Indonesia unit
AirAsia, Asia’s largest budget carrier, is still considering an initial public offering for its Indonesia affiliate, whose flight QZ8501 crashed and killed 162 people on board in December.
An IPO will make the airline more transparent, Tony Fernandes, chief executive officer of AirAsia Group, said in Sydney on Thursday. The comment comes after the Malaysian Reserve newspaper reported in July that the offer was scrapped because of poor financial results.
Mr Fernandes said it’s too soon to consider an IPO for its India subsidiary. Malaysia-based AirAsia has bases in Indonesia, the Philippines, India, Thailand and Japan as economic growth in the region enables more people to fly.
In Japan, AirAsia had looked at leases on A330s that Skymark Airlines is considering transferring after filing for bankruptcy protection in January. AirAsia had also considered joining investors looking to support the airline’s exit from bankruptcy.