Virgin Atlantic boss Sir Richard Branson looking for investors to stop the airline from going bust
SIR Richard Branson is looking for investors for Virgin Atlantic to stop the airline from going bust.
The billionaire boss has been slammed for seeking a £500million government bailout for the airline but it's temporarily shelved these plans, reports .
The airline is said to have appointed investment bank Houlihan Lokey to help find investors.
The bank has lined up 100 potential bidders with around half asking for more information, according to sources.
It's hoped that the investors will inject cash to help write-off debts or provide equity or convertible loans, which could leave Mr Branson's 51 per cent stake in the business slashed.
Interested parties reportedly include Singapore wealth fund Temasek and Northill Capital, US based firms Centerbridge Partners and Cerberus Capital Management.
If it can't find suitable investors, the firm may look to put the airline into administration.
The travel industry has almost stopped operating completely as governments scramble to stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus.
Many struggling airlines have been able to access the Treasury's Covid Corporate Financing Facility loans, including easyJet and Wizz Air, but Virgin Atlantic has failed to meet the criteria for the emergency cash.
In an open letter to his 10,000 employees last week, Mr Branson warned the airline would go bust without support and offered is £80million Necker island as collateral.
On the same day, Virgin Australia went into voluntary administration after failing to secure a government bailout.
A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson told The Sun that it is "exploring options" to "obtain additional external funds."
They added that the airline is in a "stable position" and it is taking action to "reduce [our] costs, preserve cash and protect jobs".
They said: "Virgin Group is providing liquidity to help support its companies and save jobs.
"Richard and the Virgin Group are committed to the airline, and are not looking to sell Virgin Atlantic.
"They recognise that further investment will be necessary to make up for the total loss of revenue due to Covid-19 and are working with Houlihan Lokey to approach private investors about the investment opportunity."
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