This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on December 29, 2025 - January 4, 2026

THE privatisation of Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) stood out as the year’s largest deal on Bursa Malaysia, while also attracting significant controversy. Moreover, it was among the longest-running privatisation exercises in recent market history, with the offerors taking nearly nine months to secure sufficient acceptance to delist the airport operator.

A consortium led by sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd, alongside the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), first announced its intention to take MAHB private on May 15, 2024. The formal offer was launched six months later, on Nov 15, via AmInvestment Bank Bhd.

Operating under the name Gateway Development Alliance Sdn Bhd (GDA), the consortium sought to acquire the remaining 1.12 billion MAHB shares it did not already own, representing 67.01% of issued capital, for RM12.3 billion, or RM11 a share in cash. The offer valued MAHB at an equity value of RM18.4 billion and enterprise value of RM22.9 billion.

The privatisation sought to strengthen MAHB’s financial position and operational performance outside the constraints of a public listing. The consortium said the airport operator’s network of 39 airports had suffered from years of underinvestment, leaving it with an ageing asset base and a series of high-profile operational failures. MAHB also owns the Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport in Turkiye.

The consortium maintained that the offer represented an attractive exit for minority shareholders. Since its listing in November 1999 at RM2.50 a share, MAHB had never traded above the offer price. Its all-time high was RM10.94, reached on Feb 7, 2025.

The RM11 offer price represented a 124.8% premium to MAHB’s book value of RM4.89 per share as at end-September 2024. It was also a 5.8% premium to the last traded price of RM10.40 on May 14, 2024, prior to the privatisation offer, and exceeded the five-day, three-month and six-month volume-weighted average prices by 6.44%, 15.16% and 25.96% respectively.

Still, the deal faced stiff resistance.

Sceptics argued that the offer undervalued the group and urged shareholders to reject it. They pointed to new operating and lease agreements signed with the government in March 2024, which extended MAHB’s concession for the country’s 39 airports until 2069, materially enhancing long-term earnings visibility.

Critics also called on the government to halt the transaction over concerns about foreign ownership of strategic infrastructure, citing GIP’s ownership by BlackRock Inc, a company with alleged links to Israel.

While independent adviser Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd concluded that the offer was “not fair but reasonable” and recommended acceptance, MAHB’s independent directors disagreed, highlighting the group’s improving financial performance, defined growth strategy and long-term development initiatives.

Ultimately, the consortium secured acceptance of more than 95%, though only after extending the closing date three times — from Jan 8, 2025 to Jan 17, then to Jan 24, and finally to Feb 4. On Feb 12, GDA announced it had acquired 98.68% of MAHB’s shares and would compulsorily acquire the remainder to complete the privatisation.

MAHB was officially delisted from Bursa’s Main Market on Feb 25, 2025.

Post-privatisation, Khazanah, via wholly-owned subsidiary UEM Group Bhd, became MAHB’s largest shareholder with a 40% stake, followed by EPF with 30%. GIP holds 25% of MAHB, while ADIA holds 5%, and the government retains a special share.

UBS AG’s Singapore branch acted as the sole international financial adviser to MAHB. The transaction was its largest airport merger and acquisition (M&A) and privatisation deal in Southeast Asia, underscoring UBS’ position as a leading adviser on Asia-Pacific airport infrastructure and power transactions. In 2025, UBS completed nine transactions in Malaysia — four M&A and five equity deals — with a combined value of US$6.6 billion (RM27 billion).

While the privatisation has yet to yield visible improvements across MAHB’s airport network, particularly at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), MAHB remains highly rated, with an AAA rating from RAM Ratings and an A3 rating from Moody’s. These ratings continue to allow MAHB to tap capital markets at competitive funding costs.

For now, attention is focused on whether MAHB’s new owners can resolve long-standing issues at KLIA, including persistent failures in the aerotrain and baggage handling systems, and restore passenger confidence. 

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