Skift Take
Regrets? Lufthansa has a few. But its supervisory board, and now shareholders, are simply making the most of a bad situation by accepting the German government's bailout conditions.
No stone was left unturned Thursday during Lufthansa’s six-hour long virtual extraordinary general meeting in which shareholders formally voted to accept a $10 billion bailout package from the German government.
The result may not have come as a surprise following majority shareholder Heinz Hermann Thiele's last-minute backing for the deal. He owns a 15.5 percent stake.
"This is truly an extraordinary general meeting," noted Karl-Ludwig Kley, chairman of its supervisory board, in his opening speech. "It is of historic impact. It’s importance reminds us of (Lufthansa's) foundation in 1955, and privatization in 1997. This special importance has been magnified by Heinz Hermann Thiele. He’s fine with this agreement."
So what does the agreement mean? The bailout includes $336 million equity participation through the subscription of new shares by the state (corresponding to 20 percent of the share capital).
Then there's a $5.3 billion silent participation with the features of a non-convertible equity instrument, a
