HNA's Virgin Australia stake said to draw bidder interest

HNA Group’s minority stake in airline Virgin Australia is drawing interest from potential bidders as the Chinese conglomerate offloads non-core assets to reduce debt, according to people familiar with the matter. The approximately 20% stake could attract bids from existing shareholders in the company as well as other airlines and investment funds if HNA decides to pursue a sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deliberations are private. While the group is open to offers, it isn’t actively working on selling its holding, one of the people said. Singapore Airlines and Nanshan Capital, which each control about a fifth of Virgin Australia’s shares, are among the companies weighing a bid, the people said. The Australian airline has a market value of about A$1.9b after its shares dropped about 20% this year through Thursday. More than 90 percent of Virgin Australia’s shares are controlled by five investors, according to the company’s last annual report. <br/>