Rakesh Gangwal, the co-founder of India’s largest airline, IndiGo, and his family trust are reportedly seeking as much as $803 million from the sale of a 3.4 per cent stake in the carrier.
The move is seen as the billionaire’s plans to further cut his holding in InterGlobe Aviation Ltd, the operator of IndiGo.
Gangwal and The Chinkerpoo Family Trust are selling as many as 13.2 million shares of the airline at a floor price of INR 5,175 ($61), Bloomberg reported, citing the terms of the deal.
The floor price is a 4.5 per cent discount to Monday’s closing price of INR 5,420.
This is Gangwal’s third share sale since March 2024, having previously sold shares worth over $2 billion through block trades.
He currently owns 5.3 per cent of the firm, while the trust owns 8.23 per cent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Gangwal, 71, co-founded IndiGo in 2006 with Managing Director Rahul Bhatia, but quit the airline’s board in 2022, following a dispute with Bhatia over a change to certain rules in the company’s articles of association.
The airline, with a fleet of 434 aircraft, had a 64.3 per cent market share as of March 31.
Its $24.6 billion market value puts it just behind Delta Air Lines Inc. and Ryanair Holdings Plc among the world’s biggest airlines.
There is a 150-day lockup on the seller and the trust, according to the terms, the Bloomberg report said.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are the placement agents, the report said.
Gangwal currently chairs the board of directors of US budget carrier Southwest.
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