The stock market saw a sharp decline by 95% in the stocks of SAS (SAS.ST) as they opened on Wednesday.
This was due to the announcement made by the Scandinavian airline on Tuesday evening regarding their new major shareholders as part of their restructuring. As a result, the company will be delisted from bourses and existing ownership stakes will be erased.
In their statement, SAS revealed that U.S. investment firm Castlelake and Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) will be joining the Danish state as major shareholders, following the airline’s bankruptcy proceedings.
This move was made after years of struggling with high costs and low customer demand caused by the pandemic, which led to the company filing for bankruptcy protection in the United States in mid-2022.
Castlelake will acquire a 32% stake, Air France-KLM will own approximately 20%, Lind Invest will hold an 8.6% stake, and the Danish state will hold around 26%. The airline stated that the remaining equity will be distributed among creditors.
SAS shares, which have already been declining in recent years, were trading down by 79% at 0742 GMT to 0.06 Swedish crowns ($0.0054).