India’s largest airline IndiGo set to launch venture capital firm

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₹15,691 crore, up 89% from the previous quarter. Today, the airline reported its highest-ever quarterly profit of 3,090.6 crore in the April-June 2023 quarter on the back of robust demand for air travel during the period, lower fuel costs and favourable movement in foreign currency. “Given our strong liquidity position, we are also planning to invest in some aircraft and related assets.

Further, subject to regulatory approvals, we are also planning on launching a venture capital arm to invest in early-stage companies operating in aviation, consumer-focused and allied sectors such as travel, lifestyle, hospitality and transportation. Given our large consumer base, we believe these investments will help us add value to the airline," chief financial officer Gaurav Negi told analysts in the post-earnings conference call. Out of its 316 aircraft, 14 are owned by IndiGo, 300 are on operating lease, and two are on wet lease arrangement where an aircraft is leased along with the crew.

The airline’s management stated that while acquisition of assets such as engines and aircraft did not make sense once the Covid-19 pandemic impacted the business, the positive business sentiment over the past three quarters has led to this change in strategy. The airline has reported a cumulative net profit of ₹5,421 crore over the past three quarters from October 2022 until June 2023. “We will look at investing ₹7 crore in the venture capital business to begin with.

Internal discussions are happening. This is a directional view. We haven’t decided on how much capital we want to allocate to that," Negi added.