KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Airlines has used RM1.3 billion from the RM3.6 billion in new capital provided by parent Khazanah Nasional Bhd in 2021 under the airline's business turnaround plan.
Khazanah managing director Datuk Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir said the national carrier had plenty of room for growth including buying new aircraft.
Khazanah, he added, would continue to support Malaysia Airlines for the next two years even though the carrier had seen its cash flow in the black for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic.
"It is a blessing that they are cash positive. They seized the moment during the crisis, fixing the balance sheet and making sure there is a focus on making the whole airline profitable," he said at a press conference on Khazanah's 2022 performance today.
"In order to have sustainable business we need to look at the customer experience. It has to be the best and for that it requires investment and this is where we will continue to support them.
"As for foreign investments, I would like them to be in a stronger position. Get the airline steady and then we may see them form alliances with other airlines," Amirul Feisal added.
He did not give a timeline on when Khazanah felt Malaysia Airlines would be able to make a full turnaround, saying the business space was still recovering from the effects of the pandemic.
On its exposure to Silicon Valley Bank, Amirul Feisal said Khazanah had no direct exposure, with insignificant impact, on its investments following the collapse of the United States lender which was mostly tied with players in the tech industry
"We have no direct exposure as in no shareholding, no bond holding, no deposits and no borrowing. The indirect exposure is insignificant as far as we are concerned, but we look at the implication on the general market such as the S&P 500 (large-cap US equities) and global market," he said.
He said the situation was also applicable to another international lender Credit Suisse, which had gone bankrupt and swallowed by its Swiss peer UBS in a US$3.25 billion takeover.