Stodir ( is, Stoðir, FL Group prior to 4 June 2008) is a majority family-owned
investment company located in
Reykjavík, Iceland. The company was founded on July 20, 1973, under the name Flugleiðir. It was formed as a holding company for
Loftleiðir
Loftleiðir HF, internationally known as Icelandic Airlines (abbreviated IAL) or Loftleiðir Icelandic, was a private Icelandic airline headquartered on the grounds of Reykjavík Airport in Reykjavík, which operated mostly trans-atlantic flig ...
and
Air Iceland
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing fo ...
.
FL Group was best known for its subsidiary
Icelandair Group
Icelandair Group hf. is an Icelandic travel industry corporation, the owner and holding company of the airline Icelandair and several other travel industry companies in Iceland. The group's headquarters are at Reykjavík Airport in Reykjavík. ...
, which was sold in October 2006.
Icelandair,
Loftleidir Icelandic
Loftleiðir HF, internationally known as Icelandic Airlines (abbreviated IAL) or Loftleiðir Icelandic, was a private Icelandic airline headquartered on the grounds of Reykjavík Airport in Reykjavík, which operated mostly trans-atlantic fligh ...
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
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
in September 2008 after
Glitnir
Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one", "president" in modern Icelandic and Faroese) is the god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is generally identified with Fosite, a god of the Frisians.
Name
Grimm took ''Forseti'', "''pr ...
, its largest investment, was part-
nationalised by the Icelandic government.
The company, then named Stodir, was restructured in 2009 and all shares delivered to its creditors. Between 2009 and 2016, all assets were sold and all debt repaid. In 2017, new shareholders acquired the company and Stodir was repositioned as an active investment company.
History
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 Air Iceland 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 Air Iceland 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.
In December 2002
Baugur Group
Baugur Group (; Icelandic language, Icelandic: ) was an Icelandic investment company. The group began as a supermarket and general retail company in Iceland, before diversifying to own a number of businesses at its peak, primarily in the United Ki ...
acquired 20% of the company.
Baugur Group
Baugur Group (; Icelandic language, Icelandic: ) was an Icelandic investment company. The group began as a supermarket and general retail company in Iceland, before diversifying to own a number of businesses at its peak, primarily in the United Ki ...
was reportedly controlled by a number of companies in a single mailbox in
British Virgin Islands
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, song_type = Territorial song
, song = " Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands"
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.
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
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
low-cost airline
Sterling Airways. In addition, ''FL GROUP'' holds a 16.18% stake in
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
"
no-frills" carrier
easyJet
EasyJet plc (styled as easyJet) is a British multinational low-cost airline group headquartered at London Luton Airport. It operates domestic and international scheduled services on 927 routes in more than 34 countries via its affiliate airli ...
. On January 6, 2006,
Hannes Smárason,
CEO, stated that a
merger of
easyJet
EasyJet plc (styled as easyJet) is a British multinational low-cost airline group headquartered at London Luton Airport. It operates domestic and international scheduled services on 927 routes in more than 34 countries via its affiliate airli ...
and
Sterling was a possibility.
2006-2007
In early 2006 ''Ferðaskrifstofa Íslands'' was sold to
Sumarferðir and ''Icelandair Car Rental'' (Hertz) was sold to
Magnús Kristinsson, the owner of
Toyota
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
in
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
.
In February 2006 FL GROUP announced plans to list its subsidiary Icelandair Group in
Iceland Stock Exchange
The Nasdaq Iceland, formerly known as the Iceland Stock Exchange (XICE) ( is, Kauphöll Íslands), is a stock exchange located in Iceland. It was established in 1985 as a joint venture of several banks and brokerage firms on the initiative of the ...
.
FL sold its 16.9% stake in airline
easyJet
EasyJet plc (styled as easyJet) is a British multinational low-cost airline group headquartered at London Luton Airport. It operates domestic and international scheduled services on 927 routes in more than 34 countries via its affiliate airli ...
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 2006 FL GROUP secured the sale of
Icelandair Group
Icelandair Group hf. is an Icelandic travel industry corporation, the owner and holding company of the airline Icelandair and several other travel industry companies in Iceland. The group's headquarters are at Reykjavík Airport in Reykjavík. ...
.
In 2007, the FL Group invested $50 million in several
Bayrock projects linked to
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
, including a development in
Whitestone, Queens
Whitestone is a residential neighborhood in the northernmost part of the New York City borough of Queens. The neighborhood proper is located between the East River to the north; College Point and Whitestone Expressway to the west; Flushing and ...
, and
Trump SoHo
The Dominick, formerly the Trump SoHo, is a $450 million, 46-story, 391-unit hotel condominium located at 246 Spring Street at the corner of Varick Street in the Hudson Square neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It was announced in 2006, ...
in Manhattan.
2008 revamp
In February 2008, after the US real-estate bubble had burst, FL Group announced it was divesting itself of its real-estate projects in the US. The Trump Tower project, along with other US based real estate projects, were moved to a subsidiary of FL Group called FL Bayrock Holdco.
In March, stakes in
Finnair
Finnair ( fi, Finnair Oyj, sv, Finnair Abp) is the flag carrier and largest airline of Finland, with its headquarters in Vantaa on the grounds of Helsinki Airport, its hub. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both domestic and international ...
and investment group
Aktiv Kapital were
divested
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for financial, ethical, or political objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm. A divestment is the opposite of an investment. Divestiture is a ...
; in April a 39% stake in FL was acquired by
Styrkur Invest, a company controlled by FL's Chairman
Jón Ásgeir Jóhannesson
Jón Ásgeir Jóhannesson (born 27 January 1968, in Reykjavík) is an Icelandic convicted criminal and former CEO of Baugur Group.
Early career
Jón Ásgeir's parents were Jóhannes Jónsson (1940-2013) and Ása Karen Ásgeirsdóttir (1942-), w ...
. The company then
delisted
In corporate finance, a listing refers to the company's shares being on the list (or board) of stock that are officially traded on a stock exchange. Some stock exchanges allow shares of a foreign company to be listed and may allow dual listing, su ...
from the
Iceland Stock Exchange
The Nasdaq Iceland, formerly known as the Iceland Stock Exchange (XICE) ( is, Kauphöll Íslands), is a stock exchange located in Iceland. It was established in 1985 as a joint venture of several banks and brokerage firms on the initiative of the ...
on 6 June after a
share buyback. 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 company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
Baugur Group
Baugur Group (; Icelandic language, Icelandic: ) was an Icelandic investment company. The group began as a supermarket and general retail company in Iceland, before diversifying to own a number of businesses at its peak, primarily in the United Ki ...
.
Insolvency 2008
In September 2008 it was announced that Stodir had filed an application for a
debt moratorium
A debt moratorium is a delay in the payment of debts or obligations. The term is generally used to refer to acts by national governments. Moratory laws are usually passed at times of special political or commercial stress: for instance, on severa ...
process at the District Court of Reykjavík, effectively putting the company into
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
.
The move was prompted by the
Government of Iceland
The politics of Iceland take place in the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the president is the head of state, while the prime minister of Iceland serves as the head of government in a multi-party syste ...
's acquisition of three-quarters of troubled bank
Glitnir
Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one", "president" in modern Icelandic and Faroese) is the god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is generally identified with Fosite, a god of the Frisians.
Name
Grimm took ''Forseti'', "''pr ...
, in which Stodir had previously held a 32% stake.
For 2008, FL Bayrock Holdco posted more than US$140 million in losses. It was declared bankrupt in January 2014, costing its sole investor and creditor, the parent FL Group, nearly US$130 million in losses.
2009-2016
Composition agreement reached with creditors (June 2009), which thereby acquired all shares in the renamed company Stodir.
Between 2009 and 2016, all assets were sold except for a shareholding in Refresco Holding, a pan European beverage company, all debt was paid off, and all legal issues resolved.
2017
S121 ehf. (a group of Icelandic and UK family investors) acquired the majority of shares in Stodir.
2018
Refresco shareholding was sold for EUR 140 million and Stodir was repositioned as an active investment company.
2018-current
A number of investments made, including listed shares in Arion bank, Siminn, Kvika bank and Blue Lagoon.
Current investments
*Arion Bank, an Icelandic bank (5% holding)
*Síminn, an Icelandic telecommunications firm (16% holding)
*Kvika bank, an Icelandic bank (6% holding)
Management
Board of directors
* Sigurjon Palsson, Executive Chairman
* Ari Fenger
* Magnus Armann
Key employees
* Jon Sigurdsson, CEO
* Julius Thorfinnsson, COO
References
External links
Stodir's Web SiteIceland Review
{{Authority control
Investment management companies of Iceland
Financial services companies established in 1973
1973 establishments in Iceland