Business-class airline Silverjet has completed a funding deal worth £12.7 million and secured a deal for proposed further investment of £38 million.
The airline has secured a loan facility to borrow up to £8.4 million and a proposed £4.3 million subscription agreement with investor Viceroy Holdings, which is affiliated with Viceroy Fund, an international luxury development fund based in the US and the United Arab Emirates.
Under the subscription agreement, subject to shareholder approval, Silverjet proposes to issue 25,061,728 shares at 17 pence per share to Viceroy to raise gross proceeds of £4.3 million.
Viceroy Holdings also intends to invest a further £38 million in the ongoing development of Silverjet and in the international rollout of the brand. This will include introducing the Silverjet concept into new markets in the Middle East, Far East and Africa, using the Middle East as a regional hub.
The news follows the recent collapse of business-only transatlantic rival Eos Airlines as start-up airlines struggle with the record oil price and the failure of Maxjet in December last year.
Silverjet chief executive Lawrence Hunt said: “This investment means that Silverjet is now well placed, both financially and strategically, to exploit the opportunities which exist in the airline and all business class market – a market which we now dominate.”