USE suspends trading of Kenya Airways shares

The Uganda Securities Exchange (USE) has suspended the trading of Kenya Airways shares on the Uganda stock exchange.

The suspension comes at a time when the Kenya Airways is undergoing equity and debt restructuring.

The suspension means Kenya Airways shareholders cannot sell their shares.

According to the Uganda Stock Exchange legal and compliance manager, Proscovia Nambatya, the decision comes days after the Nairobi Securities Exchange suspended Kenya Airways from trading its shares.

"This was an order from the Capital Markets Suthority of Kenya that we are responding to ," Nambatya said.

She added: "If we don’t suspend the counter, shareholders can react to the information which is very dangerous, shares can fall from shs30,000 to shs 1 which can wipe away all the capital of the company.”

The request by the Kenya Capital Market Authority to suspend Kenya airways according to the Uganda Stock Exchange is legally acceptable.

But the airline can still trade, once the suspension is lifted.

Currently the government of Kenya is the largest shareholder in Kenya Airways with 48.9%  followed by KQ Lenders Company 2017 limited with 38.1%shares and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines with 7.8%.