IndiGo picks six banks for IPO of up to $400 million - sources

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Budget airline IndiGo has picked six lead managers for its initial public offering, which could be worth up to $400 million, three people involved in the deal said.

The carrier will be listed in Mumbai early next year depending on market conditions, said the sources, who declined to be named as the process is not public yet.

IndiGo, which is owned by InterGlobe Enterprises, whose interests cover aviation, hospitality and travel-related services, has picked Citigroup , Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank to manage the issue, along with Standard Chartered , JPMorgan Chase and Kotak Mahindra Bank , the sources said.

 

An IndiGo spokeswoman declined to comment.

The carrier plans to use the proceeds to expand its fleet and services in the highly competitive local aviation sector, the sources said.

IndiGo says it makes a profit in a market where most other carriers are losing money due to high fuel costs and taxes. Indian airlines lost a combined $1.3 billion in the year to March, as per estimates by the consultancy Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation.

Last month, Malaysia-based carrier AirAsia Bhd's Indian joint venture became the seventh operational carrier in India, while Singapore Airlines' joint venture in India is likely to start flying this year, increasing competition.

IndiGo's rival SpiceJet Ltd said in May it was in "advanced" talks to get funding, after reporting its biggest annual loss since it started flying.

(Reporting by Sumeet Chatterjee, Tommy Wilkes and Devidutta Tripathy; Editing by Susan Fenton)