AirAsia X soars x-tra high
AIRASIA X BERHAD ("AirAsia X" or the "Company"), Asia Pacific's leading(1) low-cost, long-haul air carrier, in connection with its landmark initial public offering ("IPO"), officially commenced trading under AAX (5238) on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad ("Bursa Malaysia") at the opening of trading at 9.00am this morning.
"This is just another stepping stone to bigger and better things that are yet to come. Being a listed entity, we are now accountable to our public shareholders, and we are dedicated to putting them first. However, we will also not lose sight of the journey ahead of us. We will work harder to grow AirAsia X to a more prominent position, while at the same time leveraging on the strong brand of the AirAsia Group," said Independent Non-Executive Chairman Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz during the listing ceremony.
The IPO of AirAsia X was highly successful, with the retail offering to the Malaysian Public garnering a subscription rate of 3.8 times, and the institutional offering attracting strong demand from institutional investors in Malaysia and from around the world, including some of the largest and best-known global funds. Total demand for the institutional tranche was more than 10 times the base shares made available to the institutional investors. The book was multiple times oversubscribed across the entire price range. Through the IPO, the company has raised approximately RM740.7 million in primary proceeds based on the IPO price of RM1.25 per share, and has an implied market capitalisation of approximately RM3.0 billion upon listing.
AirAsia X will use approximately one-third of the primary proceeds raised from the IPO for capital expenditure, including the acquisition of engineering and aircraft related equipment and parts, as well as for the expansion of AirAsia X into new hubs in the future. Another approximately one-third of primary proceeds will be used for the repayment of bank borrowings while the balance will be used for working capital as well as for listing expenses.
Incorporated in 2006, AirAsia X commenced low-cost, long-haul air transportation services in November 2007 with its inaugural route from its hub in Kuala Lumpur to the Gold Coast, Australia. The airline now serves 14 destinations across Asia, Australia, and the Middle East with flights to Busan, Korea commencing on 15 July 2013. AirAsia X currently operates a fleet of 12 A330-300s for scheduled services, representing the largest LCC wide-body aircraft seat capacity in the Asia Pacific region(2).
CIMB Investment Bank Berhad is the Principal Adviser for the exercise, and Joint Global Coordinator together with Credit Suisse (Singapore) Limited and Maybank Investment Bank Berhad.
The Joint Bookrunners for the Institutional Offering (in alphabetical order) are Barclays Bank PLC, BNP Paribas, Singapore Branch, CIMB Investment BankBerhad, Citigroup Global Markets Limited, CLSA Singapore Pte Ltd, Credit Suisse (Singapore) Limited, Credit Suisse Securities (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Maybank Investment Bank Berhad, Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc, and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, Singapore Branch.
The Joint Managing Underwriters are CIMB Investment Bank Berhad, Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad, Maybank Investment Bank Berhad and RHB Investment Bank Berhad. The Joint Underwriters are CIMB Investment Bank Berhad, Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad, Maybank Investment Bank Berhad, RHB Investment Bank Berhad, AFFIN Investment Bank Berhad and MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Berhad.