London City Airport has raised £100 million sterling (€156 million) through a bond issue of 7.886 per cent secured notes due in 2021, which have been placed with institutional investors.

The bonds, repayable from future cash flows, were placed by City Aviation Finance, a holding company owned by the airport. Funds generated from the placing will be used for future international airport investment opportunities.

Acquired by businessman Mr Dermot Desmond in 1995, the airport claims to be one of the fastest growing in Europe. The compound annual growth rate of passengers using the airport between 1995 and 1998 was 32.6 per cent, with throughput increasing from 600,000 to 1.3 million in the same period.