Brazil's Azul approves capital increase with Neeleman investment

Brazilian airline Azul's board of directors has approved a capital increase as part of an out-of-court restructuring that gave lessors equity in lieu of nearly $550m in obligations, the company said late on Thursday. The capital increase of up to 3.37b reais ($591m) came through the issuance of new shares, Azul said in a securities filing, with fresh investment from controlling shareholder David Neeleman, a serial aviation entrepreneur who also founded U.S. airline JetBlue. Neeleman currently holds 67% of Azul's voting shares, with the other 33% being held by shareholders of Trip, an airline Azul acquired in the early 2010s. He is expected to lose control of the firm as part of the restructuring, but remain a major shareholder.<br/>