AirAsia PH listing in the works
AirAsia Philippines is looking at making its debut at the Philippine Stock Exchange within the next 12 months to raise funds for aircraft acquisition and other expansion plans.
Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia Group, told reporters in a virtual briefing yesterday they were still ironing out the details of the fundraising activity.
“We’re looking at a few options that have been given to us by the investment bank,” he said, citing initial public offering and backdoor listing.
“I would like [for] the public to have a chance to own AirAsia Philippines,” he stressed.
He did not disclose how much could be raised from the planned transaction, as they needed to “get the valuation done” first.
Hub to the West
The public listing plans come as the group envisions the Philippines as the Malaysia-headquartered airline’s hub to the West. If plans come to fruition, it means passengers could fly to the United States with Manila as the airport for their connecting flight.
The airline official sees Japanese, Koreans and Chinese passengers transiting through Manila when visiting the West in the future.
The AirAsia Group is beefing up its aircraft fleet with the delivery of 14 jets this year. Four would come from Airbus, while 10 would be provided by lessors.
Fernandes said three to four of these jets would be allocated to Philippine operations. The local unit of the airline group currently has 16 jets.
Fernandes previously said they were looking at potentially establishing an aircraft maintenance hub, whether in Manila, Clark, Cebu or Bulacan.
He had said Asia Digital Engineering, the group’s maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) subsidiary, has been searching for a new location where it can service more jets.
Fernandes said an additional MRO facility would allow the group to deploy more aircraft given the momentum in air travel.
In January to September last year, AirAsia Philippines flew 5.26 million passengers, nearly 7 percent more than the 4.93 million passengers it serviced in the same period in 2023.
