Former EVA Airways Corp (EVA, 長榮航空) chairman Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) is considering selling his stake in the nation’s second-largest carrier to fund an unspecified new enterprise, his lawyer said yesterday.
Chang has expressed his resolve to make a full exit from EVA and Evergreen Group (長榮集團), and will go as far as selling off his stakes in the conglomerate to his brothers, Song Yao-ming (宋耀明), a lawyer at Lee and Li Attorneys-At-Law (理律法律事務所), was quoted as saying by the Central News Agency.
Chang was ousted as chairman following a succession battle with the other heirs of Evergreen Group founder Chang Yung-fa (張榮發), who died in January.
Leveraging their controlling stake, the rival heirs to the NT$400 billion (US$12.3 billion) shipping and transportation conglomerate stripped Chang of the EVA and Evergreen Group chairmanship.
The family feud has since subsided and Chang’s priority is to verify his share of the Evergreen Group fortune, as he is no longer seeking to regain managerial control of the conglomerate, Song said in the report.
Song said that Chang’s request to audit the financial reports of several Evergreen Group-affiliated overseas subsidiaries and holding companies is aimed at achieving a clean break from the conglomerate.
Chang reportedly also requested that he be removed as a guarantor to about NT$75 billion of corporate debt issued by the conglomerate’s various units, as he no longer holds a management role.
The report said it would cost about NT$7.74 billion to buy out Chang’s 11.45 percent stake, or 440 million shares, in the airline, based on yesterday’s closing price of NT$17.6.
In light of the soured relations between Chang and the other heirs, it is not likely that the two sides would be able to agree on a transfer of the shares, industry observers said.
Based on EVA’s average daily turnover of 20,000 shares, it would take the market at least one month to digest the stake, observers said.
In the report, Song said that Chang has not ruled out setting up his own airline, adding that the former EVA chairman has plenty of options and funds available for his next venture.
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