SpiceJet to file overdue results after exchange's suspension warning

NEW DELHI: India's SpiceJet said on Friday it will announce its overdue financial results by a December 7 deadline, days after one of the country's two main bourses warned it would suspend trading in shares of the cash-strapped airline if it failed to do so.

SpiceJet's share of India's domestic aviation market, the world's third-largest, has plunged to just 0.6% from nearly 15% in 2019. The airline has slashed flights, grounded planes and delayed salary payments to many of its pilots amid a cash crunch that has forced it to seek government-backed financing.

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In a notice on Monday, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in Mumbai said it would suspend trading in SpiceJet shares from December 10 because the airline had not filed its results for the March and June quarters.

The suspension will not take effect if SpiceJet complies with listing rules to the exchange's satisfaction by December 7, the notice said.

"The completion of audit has taken longer time and hence caused delay in filing of results," a SpiceJet spokesperson told Reuters, without explaining what delayed the audit.

The airline also said it had obtained an extension from the Registrar of Companies to hold its annual shareholder meeting for the financial year ended March 2026 by December 31. Under Indian law, companies must present their audited annual financial statements at such meetings.

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BSE said that during any suspension, the shares held by SpiceJet's controlling shareholders, along with other securities in their electronic securities accounts, would be frozen.

SpiceJet's chairman and managing director, Ajay Singh, is among the airline's controlling shareholders. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Singh personally held a 12% stake as of March 31, while the wider group of controlling shareholders owned 24.2%, according to the company's latest available shareholding disclosure.

SpiceJet competes with IndiGo and the Air India group, which together accounted for more than 90% of India's domestic passenger market in September. Its financial troubles have been worsened by the Middle East conflict, which has pushed up fuel prices and restricted airspace access.

SpiceJet last reported financial results in February, posting a consolidated net loss of 2.62 billion rupees ($27.8 million) for the October-December 2025 quarter.

Indian listing rules require companies to report quarterly results within 45 days of the end of each quarter, except the final quarter of the financial year, and audited annual results within 60 days of the financial year's end.

Separately, SpiceJet said on Friday its board would meet on November 18 to consider raising fresh capital through the issuance of shares, debt securities or other financial instruments.