Greece Sells Stake in Athens Airport: IPO Raises €785 Million

Athens (Greece), Feb 2 (AP) Greece completed a major privatisation on Friday, selling its 30 per cent stake in the biggest airport operator in the tourism-reliant country during an initial public offering, officials said.

Shares in Athens International Airport are expected to begin trading on the Athens stock exchange starting on Wednesday, the airport said in a statement.

Finance Minister Costis Hadzidakis said the listing of a new blue chip stock would provide a strong boost to Greek capital markets.

The initial public offering drew demand that exceeded the number of shares available, raising 785 million euros (USD 848 million) for Greece's state HRADF privatisation fund.

The share price was set at 8.20 euros, at the top end of the range envisaged by HRADF, implying a market capitalization of 2.46 billion euros for the airport.

Some 32 million tourists visited Greece in 2023, up from about 28 million a year earlier. Overall traffic at Greek airports hit a historic high of 72.6 million people last year, up 14 per cent on the year, according to Greece's civil aviation authority.

During Greece's 2010-18 financial crisis, the country privatised a broad raft of state assets. The process has continued at a slower pace since, with the state recently offloading its stakes in major Greek banks and pressing ahead with harbour and highway concession deals.