Thai Airways exited court rehab, relisted in 2025

Thai Airways entered a court-supervised rehabilitation in May 2020 after years of losses, with accumulated debt around 400 billion baht and negative equity. COVID-19 emptied the airline's cash, and the Thai government-backed carrier had no path to repay creditors out of operations. The Central Bankruptcy Court approved a rehabilitation plan, handing administration to a committee chaired by Piyasvasti Amranand.

The plan combined debt haircuts, converting large creditor claims into new equity or long-dated instruments, and an operational overhaul of the fleet and network. THAI kept flying during the process, unlike a liquidation, and used the court protection to renegotiate aircraft leases and supplier terms while rebuilding demand as travel returned after the pandemic.

The recovery was visible in the numbers: by the time the court discharged the company from rehabilitation in June 2025, shareholders' equity had swung from minus 140 billion baht to plus 55 billion baht, and the airline had returned to operating profitability in 2023. On June 16, 2025 the Central Bankruptcy Court formally ended the rehabilitation, and THAI's board immediately met to prepare for relisting on the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

The airline targeted a return to trading by July 2025, recapping the balance sheet so the old equity, almost wiped out at entry, was replaced by creditor-led capital that reflected the rebuilt business.

Exit with equity of +55B baht (from -140B), profit since 2023, and relisting on the SET by July 2025

Court protection froze creditor claims, buying years to fix the fleet instead of servicing 400B baht of debt

Creditor-to-equity conversion gave negotiated owners whose interest is a surviving airline, not a payout

Operating through rehabilitation kept route slots, brand and staff intact, so recovery taxed no reopening cost

Profitability since 2023 proved the cost base was genuinely reset, not a paper number

A court-run rehabilitation with creditor haircuts and fleet discipline can restructure a national carrier without a bailout of its old equity

THAI resumed trading on the SET in July 2025, ending a four-year overhang for shareholders and creditors alike. The rehabilitation is cited in Southeast Asia as the template for how a flag carrier can endure an industry shock without a taxpayer bailout of old equity.