Philippines AirAsia (Z2, Manila Ninoy Aquino International) may defer its proposed debut on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) to 2019, CEO Dexter Comendador has revealed.
The AirAsia Group unit had previously intended to IPO this year but, according to Comendador, rising fuel prices coupled with a strengthening dollar have forced a review of those plans.
“We’re still working on it, but I think it might get delayed," Comendador was quoted by Business Insider magazine. "Probably next year. There are too many problems at the moment, especially the fuel prices, the foreign exchange rate, plus the Boracay closure."
Philippines AirAsia had planned to raise USD250 million through its listing, the last of the AirAsia Group subsidiaries to do so.
Earlier this year, group founder and chief executive Tony Fernandes said he was looking to consolidate all the group's subsidiaries into a singular holding company that spans the entire ASEAN region.
“Eventually, I hope we can swap those shares into one company. So let’s say the 60% owned by Filipinos would be able to go up to AirAsia Group. So they wouldn’t just have a share of Philippines, they would have a share of the whole airline,” he said.
