Budget airline Wizz aims for London lift off
HUNGARIAN budget airline Wizz Air is preparing to list on the London Stock Exchange as it looks to raise €200m (£162m) and grow its business in central and eastern Europe.
The no-frills airline, which provides travel to destinations across Europe, expects to launch its initial public offering next month and will be in direct competition with listed rivals EasyJet and Ryanair.
József Váradi, chief executive of the 10-year-old company, commented: “Our consistent focus on providing high-quality services at attractive price points has brought strong, sustained growth in revenue and profit, significant brand recognition and a reputation for innovation and hometown customer care.
“We look forward to building on our success to date as we leverage opportunities in our current markets, new markets in central and eastern European region and further east, many of which have significantly higher GDP growth forecasts than the rest of western Europe.”
The business has a market share in central and eastern Europe of 38 per cent and annual revenue of over €1bn. Barclays, Citigroup, JP Morgan and Nomura will work on the deal.