Porter Aviation puts initial public offering on hold due to market conditions

Porter Aviation puts IPO on hold

TORONTO — A popular Canadian-based regional airline that flies to New York City, Boston and Chicago, put its initial public offering on hold Tuesday due to unfavorable market conditions caused by volatility in the equity markets.

The company said it will wait for equity markets to stabilize before deciding to proceed with a new public offering.

“Given current market conditions, we believe it is prudent to defer the offering at this time,” said Robert Deluce, the president and chief executive of Porter Aviation Holdings Inc., the parent company of Porter Airlines.

The airline said it had planned to use the offering to build working capital, including possibly acquiring more aircraft.

Porter airlines has an exclusive agreement to fly out of Toronto’s island airport, which is close to the city’s downtown core. The airline also flies within eastern Canada.

Porter began operations in 2006 and has been expanding rapidly, recently adding routes.