KOTA KINABALU, Aug 13 — AirAsia Group has paid back more than half of its RM300 million loan from the Sabah Development Bank approved during the Covid 19 lockdown when the budget carrier was in danger of closing down.
Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A Bhd, AirAsia’s parent company, said the loan allowed the airline to survive the two-year lockdown and was ultimately a good deal for both parties.
““We have already paid the loan down to RM170 million and will continue to repay the loan over the next two years. We are also paying RM69 million in interest,” he said in a press conference here today.
In 2020, news of the loan came to light to some controversy as a “risky venture” for the debt-ridden state bank.
Then Sabah chief minister Datuk Shafie Apdal said that the loan was a calculated move that would benefit the state in various ways.
“That loan enabled us to survive during Covid, to be quite honest.
“We are paying RM69 million in interest so it had been a good deal. Not only did we save AirAsia but we continued to carry people and allowed tourism to continue.
“We have been good customers and are paying back the loan with no funny business, so it is good business for both,” Fernandes said.
He explained that part of the RM300 million loan was used to develop Teleport’s facilities, including cold storage facilities in Sabah, the group’s new app called Move, and AirAsia.
“We can have full transparency, my CFO can give a full description of the loan. There is nothing controversial, it was a good business deal for both parties,” he said.
CFO stands for chief financial officer.
