French shipping giant CMA CGM has invested in Air France, taking a 9 per cent stake in the carrier. Photograph: Daniel SLIM / AFP via Getty ImagesAir France-KLM raised €2.26 billion by selling new shares to shore up its balance sheet and repay a chunk of the state aid that helped the carrier survive the Covid-19 crisis.
French shipping giant CMA CGM SA invested in the transaction to take a 9% stake in the carrier as part of an air-cargo alliance announced last month. It now has a seat on the board. The transaction brings Air France-KLM closer to completing a targeted €4 billion capital increase as it seeks to pay down borrowings in line with European Union requirements on state funding, which currently bar the airline from participating in the consolidation of an industry roiled by the pandemic.
Air France-KLM said last month it was in talks with Apollo Global Management Inc. for a €500 million capital injection into an Air France unit affiliate that owns a pool of spare jetliner engines used in its maintenance operations.Like other European airlines, the group is laying on capacity as the removal of Covid travel- curbs a surge in bookings.