easyJet (EZJ) founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou is seeking the dismissal of chief financial officer Andrew Findlay, having been rebuffed in his attempt to remove another director as he campaigns for the termination of a £4.5bn aircraft order with Airbus (Fra:AIR).
Sir Stelios, whose family owns around 34 per cent of easyJet’s shares, sought last week to secure an extraordinary general meeting with the aim of removing non-executive director Andreas Bierwirth. easyJet’s founder has reiterated his desire to see the aircraft order terminated, warning that “easyJet will run out of money around August 2020, perhaps even earlier” if the contract is maintained.
The company rejected his request for an EGM, saying that it did not comply with the Companies Act 2006. Sir Stelios called this move a “dirty trick” and has now threatened the attempted removal of another director for every delay on a shareholder vote, targeting Mr Findlay in his second attack on the board.
In March, easyJet chief executive Johan Lundgren told the BBC that he was seeking loan support from the UK government. Sir Stelios has rejected the need for loans, calling instead for the injection of fresh equity. But in his latest correspondence, he added that he would not participate in any equity fundraising while the Airbus deal remains in place. He urged the reduction of easyJet’s fleet size from 350 jets to 250, arguing that the airline “will not need any more additional new planes for many years to come”.
In a statement, the company said: "the board is managing the unprecedented challenges facing the airline and the aviation sector as a whole. We remain absolutely focused on short term liquidity, removing expenditure from the business alongside safeguarding jobs and ensuring the long-term future of the airline. We believe that holding a general meeting would be an unhelpful distraction from tackling the many immediate issues our business faces."
easyJet has grounded its fleet and furloughed its cabin crew in response to the coronavirus outbreak. It announced at the start of the week that it had secured £600m in commercial paper from the Bank of England's new Covid Corporate Financing Facility. easyJet will also draw down fully on its $500m (£407m) revolving credit facility. As of 9 April, it will have access to £2.3bn in cash reserves.
