Aimia vows to fight Air Canada's court move to halt upcoming merger

TORONTO -- Aimia Inc. says it plans to defend itself against a move by Air Canada in Quebec Superior Court to halt a merger that the smaller company sees as key to its corporate reinvention.

The former owner of Aeroplan -- a rewards program that Aimia sold to Air Canada last year -- says Air Canada has filed an application for an injunction against Aimia's proposed merger of its loyalty points business with Kognitiv Corp.

The agreement, announced on April 29, would see Aimia's Loyalty Solutions brand join forces with the Waterloo, Ont.-based tech company to form a new entity called Kognitiv, leaving Aimia with a 49 per cent stake in the spinoff.

Aimia says Air Canada's court filings allege that the transaction will result in breaches of non-competition and confidentiality provisions that Aimia agreed to when it announced the $516-million Aeroplan sale in November 2018.

Aimia says it denies the allegations and calls Air Canada's court application "without merit and an abuse of process."

The Kognitiv deal, slated to close the week of June 8, forms part of Aimia's plan to cast off its past as a rewards points company and reshape itself as an investment manager under an overhauled board following a tumultuous two years of shareholder unrest and litigation.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 28, 2020