Starlux Airlines, founded by Chang Kuo-wei, the ousted scion of Evergreen, made its debut on the Taiwan Stock Exchange’s main board after a successful IPO that raised TW$9.4bn ($293m). The funds from the IPO will be used as working capital for the airline, which is expanding its cargo business by ordering five A350 freighters to be delivered in 2027, with an option for five more.
Chang Kuo-wei, the chairman of Starlux, emphasized Taiwan’s potential as a key transit hub in the Asia-Pacific region. Despite facing challenges in the past, including his ousting from the family business by his half-brothers, Chang has successfully steered Starlux to operate 31 routes to 27 destinations with plans to expand its network.
With a fleet of Airbus aircraft capable of flying directly to major cities in Europe and North America, Starlux aims to capitalize on Taiwan’s strategic location for transcontinental flights. The airline faced difficulties during the Covid-19 pandemic but managed to turn profitable in 2023 with a net profit of TW$149.2m ($4.86m).
While currently operating with only belly cargo, Starlux’s cargo operations have seen significant growth due to the demand for air freight, particularly from Taiwan’s AI and microchip industries. The airline plans to exercise options to purchase additional A350F freighters, expanding its dedicated cargo fleet to 10 aircraft.
After its first day of trading, Starlux’s stock price closed nearly 19% higher, reaching TW$30.75 ($0.96) and giving the airline a market capitalization of TW$80.1bn ($2.5bn).
