Fastjet raises £1.1mln in equity drawdown

Fastjet (LON:FJET), the low cost African airline, has raised another £1.1mln after drawing down on its equity financing facility with Darwin Strategic.

The company issued just under 1.1mln shares at 1.01p each under the agreement.

Darwin is an arm of Henderson Global that funds growth companies with equity and equity-linked structures – an alternative form of financing that has become increasingly popular on AIM.

It comes alongside the news that Fastjet has also issued new shares to US asset management firm Bergen worth just under £800,000 as part of its convertible security deed.

The company said this is the last conversion under the deal.

Fastjet is set to achieve its long-held strategic aim of being a cross-border operator, as it was recently granted permission to operate routes from Tanzania to South Africa, Zambia and Rwanda.

The routes have been approved by the relevant governments under the Bilateral Air Services Agreements between Tanzania and the other countries, and represent a major breakthrough for the low-cost airline.