Jet Airway's bid to sell a 24% stake to Etihad Airways for US $339 million finally got the approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board. Even so, both companies are not out of the woods yet.
Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram said that approval comes with certain conditions for both airlines to follow. The official declined to further explain the matter though.
Nonetheless, another senior official in the finance ministry said the conditions would guarantee that the founder of Jet Airways, Naresh Goyal, will still retain control of the company. Also, the deal will again undergo intense scrutiny under the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs.
The approval of the sale is seen to pump-prime the state's effort to bring in foreign direct investments which dropped 38% on fiscal year ending March 31. The Indian central bank has also been trying to boost the currency which depreciated by 30% since six years ago.
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