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What risks will Air Europa run with the Brexit now that it is becoming Iberia’s?

| News | Public and Regulatory Law

Miguel Nieto explains in Vozpópuli that the fact that IAG is listed on the Stock Exchange makes it difficult to identify whether its shares are mostly in community hands.

Iberia's purchase of Air Europa from Globalia announced last Monday, November 4, changes the situation of the airline headed by Javier Hidalgo in the face of a possible departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union without an agreement (Hard Brexit). If the operation is approved and carried out in 2020, Air Europa could have the same shareholding structure as its owner, Iberia.

Miguel Nieto, partner of Andersen Tax & Legal, explains to Vozpópuli that the fact that IAG is listed on the Stock Exchange makes it difficult to identify whether its shares are majority in community hands. In fact, the group's main shareholder is Qatar Airways with 21% of the capital, followed by the North American investment funds Capital Research, with more than 10%, and Europacific Growth Fund (EUPAC), with 5.2%; and the management company Invesco Limited, one of the largest in the world, with 2%.

Nieto explains that "EU rules allow free traffic within Europe only to EU companies, while the rest have to sign an international agreement with Brussels". In this sense, "if there were no pact and it were considered that IAG is extra-community, it would have to reach an international agreement to operate in the member countries.

You can read the full article in Vozpópuli.

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