Japan’s ANA Holdings buys 9.5% stake in PAL Holdings for $95 million

ANA Holdings Inc., parent of All Nippon Airways, is investing $95 million to acquire 9.5 percent of PAL Holdings Inc.’s outstanding shares.

PAL Holdings is the parent of Philippine Airlines Inc., the Philippine flag carrier and the largest airline in the Philippines.

“ANA HD will acquire the shares from Trustmark Holdings Corporation, which is owned by the Lucio Tan family and is the largest shareholder of PAL Holdings,” according to a regulatory filing submitted by PAL Corporate Secretary Ma. Cecilia Pesayco on Tuesday.

Last week, PAL Holdings maintained it has always been open to new investors, amid reports that ANA intends to buy into the company.

As early as 2014, the airline has been looking for a strategic investor to strengthen its operations.San Miguel Corp., the country’s most diversified conglomerate, divested its stake in PAL.

“The Philippines and Japan have a long-standing relationship with complementary strengths,” said Jaime Bautista, president of PAL Holdings and PAL Inc., in relation to the share purchase deal.

Philippine Airlines operates 84 flights weekly on 9 routes to Japan, while ANA operates 14 flights weekly on two routes to the Philippines.

Both carriers have codeshare operations on Japan-Philippine routes and domestic routes in both countries, linking 16 Japanese and 11 Philippine destinations.

“Asia is a key growth market and we believe Philippine Airlines is in an excellent operational position to capitalize on both the strong uptick in air traffic growth as well as the vibrant, expanding Philippine economy,” said Shinya Katanozaka, president and CEO of ANA Holdings. —Jon Viktor Cabuenas/VDS, GMA News