The top lender of ailing Jet Airways India Ltd. said the burden of reversing the grounded carrier’s negative net worth before it can fly again is the biggest challenge for any potential investor. “Liabilities and losses are considerable,” Rajnish Kumar, chairman of State Bank of India, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Thursday. “All these past liabilities and then, profitably, can they fly in future? These are some of the considerations which are weighing upon the minds of the potential investors.”
Creditors led by State Bank of India have put Jet Airways up for sale after the carrier failed to pay back debt. Once India’s biggest airline by market value, Jet Airways has been a victim of a budget airline boom in the fiercely competitive market in the South Asian nation, where carriers offer base fare of as low as 1 cent to lure first time flyers.
