How it started
Founding and ownership
AIA was formed in 1988, when the Government of New Zealand corporatised the Auckland Airport. It had previously been run by the Auckland Regional Authority, covering the five councils in the Auckland region.
The government was AIA's majority shareholder, the rest being held by the local councils at founding. In 1998 the government sold its shareholding, and AIA became the fifth airport company in the world to be publicly listed. At that time the major shareholders were Auckland City Council (25.8 per cent), Manukau City Council (9.6 per cent) and North Shore City Council (7.1 per cent). North Shore City Council sold its shares in 1999 and Auckland City Council sold its share down to 12.8 per cent in 2002. After amalgamation into the Auckland Council, the local authority owned a 22.4 per cent stake worth $1.13 billion as of May 2014. As at 2024, Auckland Council held an 11.1 per cent stake, but it sold the remainder in December 2024.
AIA is a dual listed company with listings on the New Zealand Exchange and Australian Securities Exchange.
From Wikipedia’s article on Auckland International Airport Limited, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2