French state doubles stake in Air France-KLM in rights issue

Paris, Apr 20 (Prensa Latina) Loss-making Air France-KLM said Monday it had raised just over a billion euros (US.25 billion) in a share issue that saw the French state double its stake in the company to 28.6%.

April 20, 2021
08:32

According to Air France-KLM, this is a stage of rescue plan reported on April 6, in which Paris plans to convert three billion euros of direct loans into quasi-equity, in order to help the company to recover from the coronavirus-caused crisis.

‘The success of our capital increase and the renewed support of our main shareholders testify to the confidence of investors in the prospects of the group,’ Air France-KLM CEO Benjamin Smith said in a statement.

The group lost 7.1 billion euros in 2020 due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic which has resulted in the collapse of the global travel industry.

In this scenario, in addition to the French State, the China Eastern Airline increased its stake to 9.6%, while the Dutch state declined to invest further, so its stake decreased to 9.3%.

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