Advising one of the world’s fastest growing airline groups on a successful triple listing in London and Kazakhstan 

Challenge

Air Astana is the flagship carrier of Kazakhstan and one of the fastest growing airline groups in the world. 

Instinctif has been the retained international PR adviser since 2018, providing capital markets advisory, annual reports, website design and video production. 

First mooted in 2012, the airline’s long-anticipated IPO had been repeatedly postponed by events including the Covid-19 pandemic and Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

The airline was owned by the Kazakhstan Sovereign Wealth Fund (51%) and BAE Systems (49%). As such, its IPO involved a dual listing to satisfy local, retail demand in Kazakhstan (KASE and AIX) and an international offering on the London Stock Exchange. 

Action

We provided strategic counsel on all internal and external communications materials relating to the IPO. This involved liaising with the joint global coordinators and legal counsel to advise on investor materials, media enquiries and staff presentations. 

We produced full length and bitesize investor films to explain Air Astana’s growth story on social media and to customers as part of the in-flight experience. 

For international audiences, we drafted all IPO announcements and arranged media interviews with key media titles, including Financial Times, The Times and Bloomberg. In order to showcase the strength of the management team, CEO Peter Foster was profiled in City AM and interviewed on the IPO by CNBC TV. 

Result

Air Astana became the first major IPO of 2024 on the London Stock Exchange, and one of the largest in recent years. It raised $350m from investors at a valuation of between $847m. 

Air Astana’s equity story was well received with media coverage focusing on the positive market dynamics and the company’s sector-leading recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The IPO received widespread, favourable coverage across the international media, including numerous articles in tier-1 business publications. This ensured it was on the radar of institutional investors in London and European financial centres, resulting in an offering that was multiple times oversubscribed despite being upsized to meet demand.    

We are absolutely delighted with your professionalism, dedication, and commitment.

– Air Astana