Virgin Australia, the airline owned by U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital, is aiming for a A$1 billion listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in November. This would be the largest new share sale in almost two years since GQG Partners raised A$1.18 billion in its listing in October 2021.
The size of the stake that Bain will sell has yet to be decided, but could be between 30% and 40%. The IPO could value the domestic focused carrier at $A2.5 billion to $A3 billion.
Bain Capital declined to comment on the timeline of the deal, but details were first reported by Bloomberg News on Tuesday. The final valuation will be decided after further management and analyst briefings with potential investors.
This listing would be a major milestone for Virgin Australia, which was placed in voluntary administration in 2020. The airline is now aiming to raise up to A$1 billion in the deal, which would be a major boost for the Australian economy.