|
European Union rules state that EU airlines must be owned and
controlled by EU nationals or else lose their licences. EasyJet
has held an Austrian operating licence since 2017 to retain its
EU flying rights despite Britain leaving the EU.
But the airline is currently 52.65% owned by non-EU
shareholders, meaning it must make changes to meet EU rules
following the end of the Brexit transition period on Dec. 31.
By restricting voting rights, easyJet and competitors such as
British Airways owner IAG, Wizz Air and Ryanair all hope to
overcome the Brexit ownership headache.
However, concerns persist that the compliance efforts may be
unsustainable or open to legal challenge by competitors.
The post-Brexit aviation pact includes no flexibility on the
treatment of UK shareholders but does acknowledge "potential
benefits of the continued liberalisation of ownership and
control", with a pledge to review the rules over the next year.
EasyJet said on Monday that investors from outside the EU would
be restricted to controlling 49.5% of its shares, and as such it
was sending out notices to shareholders holding more than 3% of
shares to suspend some of their voting rights.
"The voting rights suspension is being applied on a 'last in,
first out' basis such that the shares most recently acquired by
relevant persons will have voting rights suspended first,"
easyJet said in a statement.
The investor register will also be kept under review, easyJet
said, saying that if non-EU ownership remains over the 49.5%
maximum for a sustained period it could start to force those
shareholders to sell their shares to EU nationals.
(Reporting by Sarah Young and Laurence Frost. Editing by Mark
Potter)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
