Ryanair to drop London Stock Exchange listing
almost 4 years in The Irish Times
Ryanair Holdings Plc said it will drop its London Stock Exchange listing, becoming the first major company to blame its departure on Brexit.
The move confirms a plan set in motion earlier this month, when the Irish discount airline cited compliance headaches tied to Britain’s exit from the European Union.
“As indicated at our interim results, and following subsequent shareholder engagement, Ryanair has decided to request the cancellation of London listing,” the company said in a statement Friday. “The volume of trading of the shares on the London Stock Exchange does not justify the costs.”
Airline ownership rules set decades ago to protect the industry in Europe have added a layer of complexity to the divorce that took effect at the start of this year. EU-based carriers must be owned and controlled from within the bloc, and with Brexit, UK nationals don’t qualify anymore.
Even after taking several steps to limit non-EU ownership, just over one-third of Ryanair’s shares are held from member states, chief executive officer Michael O’Leary told Bloomberg TV earlier this month. He said then that the Dublin-based carrier needs to take added steps to bring the total over 50 per cent.
“It’s an inevitable consequence of Brexit,” O’Leary said. “We must be EU-owned and controlled, and delisting from London is a reasonably small initiative in that strategy.” – Bloomberg