AirAsia (AK, Kuala Lumpur International) parent Capital A has been given “a clean report” from auditors Ernst & Young and is confident of meeting a deadline to submit a “regularisation plan” by early January 2023 that will normalise its status on the Bursa Malaysia stock exchange, chief executive Tony Fernandes revealed on June 16.

At a Capital A annual general meeting on the same date, all resolutions on the group’s strategy that were presented to shareholders were passed, as Fernandes informed the gathering about the auditors’ clean bill of health. Citing strong air travel demand across Southeast Asia, he laid out plans to recover to pre-Covid capacity.

The group’s airlines also include AirAsia X, AirAsia India (which Capital A may soon exit), Indonesia AirAsia, Philippines AirAsia (which is now in a position to expand), and Thai AirAsia. Under their AirAsia Aviation Group umbrella, they have been evaluating fundraising options for a planned listing in the United States, as Capital A looks to shake off its PN17 Bursa Malaysia classification as a financially distressed firm, a category it entered in January 2022. Firms with this classification are at risk of being delisted if they fail to “regularise” their finances within a set timeframe.

He added: “The clean audit report is a key step forward to expedite removal of PN17 status, which we are confident of exiting in the coming months. The PN17 regularisation plans are on track, which the management team is developing, taking into consideration multiple solutions without proposals for capital dilution or equity raising. We are confident of meeting the deadline to submit the plan to Bursa Malaysia by early January 2023,” the chief executive said.