Closing completed: Attestor becomes the new majority shareholder of Condor

The European asset manager Attestor has acquired a 51 percent stake in Condor as planned. The transaction has been approved by both anti-trust officials and the EU Commission, which also issued state-aid approval for the acquisition of Condor through Attestor. The decisions cleared the way for Attestor to invest €200 million in fresh equity capital in Condor. Additionally, another €250 million will be invested in the modernization of the leisure airline’s fleet.

“The future of Condor begins today: Attestor will be a strong majority shareholder who will not only keep all 4,050 jobs at Condor and Condor Technik, but will also set the company’s financial direction,” said Ralf Teckentrup, the CEO of Condor. “With the fresh equity capital Condor is in a strong financial position to quickly ramp-up flight operations and meet growing demand. And we will also be able to concentrate on projects such as the modernization of our long-haul fleet. We will do this with the same passion that we used to steer Condor through the crisis during the past 22 months. On behalf of all employees, I would like to express my special thanks to Attestor for the trust they have placed in us as well as to politicians, our partners and our customers who have stood so strongly behind us.”

Friedrich Andreae, the Head of Private Investments at Attestor, added: “Now that anti-trust and state-aid approval has been issued, Condor can apply all of its energies again to flying into a successful future. We at Attestor are very pleased to accompany a proud airline like Condor on this journey. We believe in the strong brand, the competitive business model and the attractive market segment of touristic travel. Above all, we believe in the strong team behind Condor. This is why we are investing significantly in the company. By doing so, we are laying the foundation for Condor to establish itself as a strong second carrier in the important German domestic market and as a leading leisure airline in Europe.”

Condor, a profitable company with a proven business model, ran into difficulties twice through no fault of its own as a result of the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook, its former parent company, and the corona pandemic. Attestor has acquired a 51 percent stake in Condor. The remaining 49 percent stake continues to be held by SG Luftfahrtgesellschaft on behalf of Germany’s federal government and the government of the state of Hesse. The investor has the option of acquiring the remaining shares at a later date. To secure jobs in the long term, the Federal Government and the State of Hesse are supporting Condor's repositioning with a restructuring of the loan by KfW, a state-owned investment and development bank, in the form of a debt waiver. Condor will repay the remainder of its loan from KfW on time as agreed.