Virgin Australia’s new boss has begun meeting with possible investors in the airline ahead of a potential float of the carrier this year.
Dave Emerson met with stakeholders and potential investors in Sydney on Tuesday in his first major move as chief executive of the airline that was rescued by Bain Capital in 2020.
Virgin has tapped brokers Goldman Sachs, UBS and Barrenjoey, who are conducting the investor meetings.
Virgin Australia aircraft in Sydney. The company hopes to be listed on the ASX by June.Credit: Bloomberg
Emerson was named chief executive of Australia’s second-largest airline, taking over from Jayne Hrdlicka last month. Virgin’s long road back to public ownership received a significant boost last month after the federal government approved Qatar Airways taking a minority stake in the airline.
In October, Bain sold 25 per cent of Virgin to the Qatar Airways and under the agreement, Virgin can use Qatar planes and crews to fly from Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth to Doha in June, followed by the opening of a route from Melbourne to Doha in December.
New Virgin Australia CEO Dave Emerson.Credit: Dallas Kilponen
Qatar announced its plans to acquire a stake in Virgin last year after it was denied more flights by the Albanese government in 2023.
Before entering administration, Virgin competed heavily on ticket price with Qantas. Since its emergence from administration, a revitalised Virgin has started to find its feet overtaking Qantas to become Australia’s largest and most reliable airline at the end of last year.
Virgin garnered a domestic market share of 35 per cent as of December, surpassing Qantas’ 34.6 per cent, the competition watchdog said in a report released in February. The airline’s passenger volume rose by 15.8 per cent over the 12 months up to December, against Qantas-owned Jetstar, which notched up 11.2 per cent. Qantas recorded 3.2 per cent, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in the report.
Returning Virgin to the sharemarket and selling its stake in the company to interested parties would allow US-based Bain to cash in on its investment. However, the timing of Virgin’s landing on the ASX remains uncertain, with the Australian Financial Review reporting the float could be early as June.
Virgin declined to comment.
An equities’ analyst with knowledge of the industry who asked not to be named said a June IPO would be “doable” but it would be “pretty early to get it through”.
Bain and Virgin would need to “get everything lined up pretty quickly”, he said.
Bain Capital retains the right to halt the float.
In 2023, when Bain flagged plans to explore a listing of Virgin, it said: “No decisions have been made as to when, or even if, any IPO will happen.”
In its 2023 statement, Bain said its “current intention” was to “retain a significant shareholding in a future IPO of Virgin Australia”.
While domestic demand for air travel remains robust, global economic uncertainty remains a hurdle for both the aviation sector and sharemarkets broadly.
US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, a cut in government funding and associated geopolitical anxiety have spooked the US airline industry.
By the end of March, shares of Delta and United Airlines have fallen about 20 per cent each this year, according to Reuters. Qantas shares, up 65 per cent over the past 12 months, have wobbled over the past week (down 6 per cent) as investors brace for Trump’s tariffs to come into full effect.
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