Japan Airlines Co, popularly known as Nikk?, an international airline headquartered in Shinagawa Tokyo, Japan, is set to purchase a stake in Malaysia Airlines Berhad, branded as Malaysia Airlines, an international airline system operating from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
According to some verified sources, there have been serious talks for Japan Airlines to pursue interest in buying a stake in Malaysian airlines amid close ties among the governments of the two countries.
Yuji Akasaka, President of Japan Airlines earlier stated that it was quite early to state if the carrier would consider making an investment in Malaysia Airlines, however further talks were possible.
Khazanah Nasional Bhd, sovereign wealth fund of Malaysia as well as the flag carrier’s only shareholder, has enlisted help from Morgan Stanley to monitor any strategic options for the national carrier.
A stake sale of Malaysia Airlines is one of those strategic options. Khazanah National’s corporate communications department has not unveiled anything on the matter yet.
Malaysia has been looking to sigh more deals with the nation of Japan, with possible deals ranging from asset sales to bond issuance.
In fact, Khazanah sold IHH Healthcare Bhd’s 16% stake to Mitsui & Co for $2 billion (RM8.34 billion) in 2018 while Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malaysia wants the country to proceed with its plan to issue out yen bonds by the end of 2019.
It would be interesting to see what decision Malaysia Airlines would take if a deal is finalized – having several strategic opportunities as well as backing by the local government or newer faces at executive table, there still lies a small hope for Malaysia’s national carrier.
Source credit: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2019/09/15/japan-airlines-could-bid-for-malaysia-airlines-stake-says-report/