The Nairobi Securities Exchange has issued a notice on the extension of the suspension from trading of the Kenya Airways Plc Shares citing uncertainty in the expected government bailout on the airline.
Notice is hereby given on the extension of suspension from trading of Kenya Airways Plc shares. The company’s operational and corporate restructure is still on going and the Government is expected to give a clear direction on its buy-out or bail-out. The Nairobi bourse in its notice.
KQ shares were initially suspended from trading on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) in July 2020 after MPs began to review the law that will pave the way for the government to take back full control of the airline.
The suspension was approved and issued by the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) pursuant to section 11(3) (w) of the Capital Markets Act and regulation 22 of the Capital Markets (Securities) (Public Offers, Listings and Disclosures) Regulations, 2002.
According to the proposed plan, the government is expected to take over Ksh. 93.5 billion ($827 million) of KQ’s debt and inject Ksh. 53.4 billion ($473 million) in direct budgetary support across the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 budget cycles. This amount will clear overdue payment obligations and cover the upfront costs of restructuring. With the proposal, the Kenyan government has dropped plans to nationalise KQ. This was to be realised through the National Aviation Management Bill 2020
The extension of suspension from trading the company’s shares will remain in force for an additional twelve (12) months, with effect from January 5 , 2022.
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