Etihad open to hiking stake in Jet

Etihad Airways could open to increasing its stake in Jet Airways, following the government opening the sector further to foreign investment. On June 20, the airline said: “Etihad Airways is a committed, long-term partner and investor in India. In 2013, we became the first international airline to invest in an Indian carrier – Jet Airways – under the then Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) rules. We value our strategic partnership with Jet and will carefully examine the Government of India’s decision on a revision of the FDI rules in the sector.”

The market has been abuzz with rumours that Etihad would raise its stake in Jet, especially if rules on effective control were liberalised. On June 21, however, in response to a questionnaire sent by Business Standard, a spokesperson for Etihad said: “This information is entirely speculative. As a policy, we do not comment on speculation.” A spokesperson for Jet Airways gave a similar reply.

Currently, Jet Airways Chairman Naresh Goyal owns 51 per cent in the airline while Etihad has a 24 per cent stake. Mutual funds and insurance companies own 10 per cent in the airline while FIIs own 4.61 per cent. Retail investors and others together own 10 per cent.