Stodir is an international investment company, headquartered in
ReykjavíkReykjavík is the capital and largest city of Iceland. Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's most northern capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
,
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
with offices in
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
.
The company was founded on July 20, 1973, under the name
Flugleiðir. It was formed as a holding company for
LoftleiðirLoftleiðir was a private Icelandic airline that operated from 1944 to 1973 when it merged with Flugfélag Íslands to form Icelandair.-History:...
and Flugfélag Íslands.
Stodir was best known for its subsidiary
Icelandair GroupIcelandair Group is an Icelandic travel industry corporation, the owner of the airline Icelandair and numerous other travel industry companies...
, which was sold in October 2006.
IcelandairIcelandair is the flag carrier airline of Iceland, based in Reykjavík. It is part of the Icelandair Group and operates services to 25 cities in 12 countries on both sides of the Atlantic. Its main base is Keflavík International Airport..- History :...
, Loftleidir Icelandic and other companies of Icelandair Group have been leaders in the Icelandic flight and tourism industry for about 70 years.
The company was placed into
administrationAdministration, as a legal concept, is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent companies and allows them to carry on running their business...
in September 2008 after
GlitnirGlitnir was an Icelandic bank. It was created by the state-directed merger of the country's three privately held banks - Alþýðubanki , Verzlunarbanki and Iðnaðarbanki - and one failing publicly held bank - Útvegsbanki - to form Íslandsbanki in 1990...
, its largest investment, was part-
nationalisedNationalization, also spelled nationalisation, is the act of taking an industry or assets into the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being state...
by the Icelandic government.
Main investments
- TM, an Icelandic insurance
Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for a premium, and can be thought of as a guaranteed and known...
firm (99% holding)
- Landic Property, a Nordic real estate
Real estate is a legal term that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings, specifically property that is fixed in location.
"Real estate" The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin...
investor. (approximate 40% stake)
- Baugur Group
Baugur Group was an Icelandic investment company. The group applied for bankruptcy protection in February 2009, after placing its UK arm in administration.- History :...
, a retailRetailing consists of the sale of goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be individuals...
investment company (39% stake)
Before 2005 change
The company that is nowadays called
Stodir was founded in 1973. In the beginning it was a holding company for "Loftleiðir" and
Flugfélag Íslands under the name Flugleidir, a hybrid of the two old names. In 1978 Flugleidir took over all assets of both companies. Until then "Loftleidir" had used "Loftleidir Icelandic", "Icelandic Airlines" or just "Icelandic" for international marketing and
Flugfélag Íslands used "Icelandair". That same year the name "Icelandair" was to be used solely for international marketing.
Flugleiðir was still the official name of the company until 2005.
After 2005 change
In 2005, the company known as
Flugleiðir was changed to an investment company called
FL GROUP. The airline had been spun off into a subsidiary named Icelandair in 2002. On October 23, 2005
FL GROUP announced its acquisition of the
DanishDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries; southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and it is bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea...
low-cost airline
Sterling AirwaysSterling Airlines A/S was an Icelandic-owned low-fare airline, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was created in September 2005 through the merger of two Danish airlines - Sterling European Airlines A/S and Maersk Air A/S - which had been bought by Icelandic investment group Fons Eignarhaldsfélag a...
. In addition,
FL GROUP holds a 16.18% stake in
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
"no-frills" carrier
easyJetEasyJet Airline Company Limited is a British airline headquartered in Hangar 89 at London Luton Airport, Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom based airline company, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 387 routes between 104...
. On January 6, 2006,
Hannes SmárasonHannes Smárason is an Icelandic businessman and former CEO of the FL Group. Hannes obtained an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management. He worked for McKinsey in Boston upon graduating from MIT from 1992 to 1996 as a Management Consultant before being hired by deCODE genetics as assistant...
, CEO, stated that a merger of
easyJetEasyJet Airline Company Limited is a British airline headquartered in Hangar 89 at London Luton Airport, Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom based airline company, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 387 routes between 104...
and
SterlingSterling Airlines A/S was an Icelandic-owned low-fare airline, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was created in September 2005 through the merger of two Danish airlines - Sterling European Airlines A/S and Maersk Air A/S - which had been bought by Icelandic investment group Fons Eignarhaldsfélag a...
was a possibility.
More changes in 2006
In early 2006
Ferðaskrifstofa Íslands was sold to Sumarferðir and
Icelandair Car Rental (Hertz) was sold to Magnús Kristinsson, the owner of Toyota in
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
.
In
February 2006February 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- →-1 February 2006 :...
FL GROUP announced plans to list its subsidiary Icelandair Group in
Iceland Stock ExchangeNASDAQ OMX ICELAND or ICEX was established in 1985 as a joint venture of several banks and brokerage firms on the initiative of the central bank. Trading began in 1986 in Icelandic government bonds, and trading in equities began in 1990. Equities trading increased rapidly thereafter...
.
FL sold its 16,9% stake in
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
no-frills airline
easyJetEasyJet Airline Company Limited is a British airline headquartered in Hangar 89 at London Luton Airport, Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom based airline company, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 387 routes between 104...
in April 2006 for €325m, returning a profit of €140m on its investment. FL had first invested in easyJet in October 2004, taking an 8,4% share, increasing this over the course of 2005.
In
October 2006October 2006 was a month that began on a Sunday.The month was marked by a nuclear test by North Korea that prompted that passing of Resolution 1718 by the United Nations Security Council....
FL GROUP secured the sale of
Icelandair GroupIcelandair Group is an Icelandic travel industry corporation, the owner of the airline Icelandair and numerous other travel industry companies...
.
2008 revamp
2008 brought a number of changes to the company: stakes in
FinnairFinnair Plc is Finland's largest airline and the flag carrier, with its headquarters in Vantaa, Finland, and its main hub at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. Finnair and its subsidiary companies dominate both the domestic and international air travel markets in Finland. The largest owner is the Government...
and investment group
Aktiv KapitalAktiv Kapital ASA is a Norwegian debt collection agency, with operations in 11 countries. It is the largest purchaser of non-performing consumer credit in Europe and Canada. The company was founded in 1991, and has grown through a number of acquisitions. It is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange,...
were both
divestedIn finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for either financial or ethical objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm...
in March, and the following month a 39% stake in FL was acquired by Styrkur Invest, a company controlled by FL's Chairman
Jón Ásgeir JóhannessonJón Ásgeir Jóhannesson is the CEO of Baugur Group.He graduated from The Commercial College of Iceland in the year 1989. The same year he, along with his father, Jóhannes Jónsson, established the retail chain Bónus, and became its Managing Director...
. The company then
delistedDelisting refers to the practice of removing the stock of a company from a stock exchange so that investors can no longer trade shares of the stock on that exchange...
from the
Iceland Stock ExchangeNASDAQ OMX ICELAND or ICEX was established in 1985 as a joint venture of several banks and brokerage firms on the initiative of the central bank. Trading began in 1986 in Icelandic government bonds, and trading in equities began in 1990. Equities trading increased rapidly thereafter...
on 6 June after a
share buybackIn some countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, corporations can buy back their own stock in a share repurchase, also known as a stock repurchase or share buyback. There has been a meteoric rise in the use of share repurchases in the U.S. in the past twenty years, from $5b in...
. Jón Ásgeir stepped down as Chairman later that month after a conviction for breaking accounting laws. His wife Ingibjorg Stefania Palmadottir was elected as his replacement. On July 4, FL Group announced both that it had changed its name to Stodir and acquired a 39% stake in retail
holding companyA holding company is a company that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself, rather its only purpose is owning shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow the...
Baugur GroupBaugur Group was an Icelandic investment company. The group applied for bankruptcy protection in February 2009, after placing its UK arm in administration.- History :...
.
Insolvency
In
September 2008September 2008 was the ninth month of the leap year. It began on a Monday and ended after 30 days on a Tuesday.-Portal:Current events:This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from September 2008....
it was announced that Stodir had filed an application for a
debt moratoriumA debt moratorium is a delay in the payment of debts or obligations. The term is generally used to refer to acts by national governments. A moratory law is usually passed in some special period of political or commercial stress; for instance, on several occasions during the Franco-Prussian War,...
process at the District Court of Reykjavík, effectively putting the company into
administrationAdministration, as a legal concept, is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent companies and allows them to carry on running their business...
. The move was prompted by the Government of Iceland's acquisition of three-quarters of troubled bank
GlitnirGlitnir was an Icelandic bank. It was created by the state-directed merger of the country's three privately held banks - Alþýðubanki , Verzlunarbanki and Iðnaðarbanki - and one failing publicly held bank - Útvegsbanki - to form Íslandsbanki in 1990...
, in which Stodir had previously held a 32% stake.
Board of directors
- Ingibjorg Stefania Palmadottir, Chair
The chairman is the highest office of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...
- Eirikur Johannsson, vice-Chairman
- Arni Hauksson
- Katrin Petursdottir
- Thorsteinn M. Jonsson
Alternates:
- Einar Thor Sverrisson
- Thordur Bogason
Key Managers
- Jón Sigurðsson, CEO
- Vidar Thorkelsson, CFO
- Bernhard Bogason, Managing director
Managing director is the term used for the chief executive of many limited companies from English speaking countries...
legalLaw is a system of rules, usually enforced through a set of institutions. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a primary social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus ticket to trading on derivatives markets...
and taxTo tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law.Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
- Orvar Kaernested, Managing director
Managing director is the term used for the chief executive of many limited companies from English speaking countries...
, private equityIn finance, private equity is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange. Investments in private equity most often involve either an investment of capital into an operating company or the acquisition of an operating company...
External links