THE Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has ceased to be a substantial shareholder of AirAsia Group Bhd after it disposed of some 18.56 million shares on Feb 6, according to a Bursa Malaysia filing on Feb 12.
The fund has been trimming its stake in the budget carrier in recent weeks.
It sold close to eight million shares in AirAsia a few days before news broke that executives of the low-cost airline had allegedly received bribes from European planemaker Airbus SE.
EPF had hived off 492,500 and 7.44 million shares on the open market on Jan 29 and 28 respectively, leaving a 6.3% stake or 210.49 million shares in AirAsia after the disposals.
The fund continued to pare its stake in AirAsia until it ceased to be a substantial shareholder on Feb 6.
According to fund managers, the selldown had already started prior to the news of the alleged bribery scandal as EPF was probably jittery over the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak.
Many airlines and hotels are already reeling from the effects the outbreak has had on the tourist and travel industries.
At 5pm, AirAsia shares were trading at RM1.20, down 20% since Jan 28 when it closed at RM1.50. Some RM1 bil of its market capitalisation has been wiped off during this period. – Feb 12, 2020
