EasyJet agrees to Castlelake's £5.2B takeover offer

easyJet’s agreement in principle to be taken over by Castlelake underpins a major consolidation move in European budget aviation. The U.S. private credit firm will pay 690 pence per share, valuing easyJet at GBP 5.23 billion (about $6.9 billion), following five offers. Castlelake raised its bid from an initial 560 pence after approaching the airline on May 29. easyJet shares closed Friday at 558.2 pence, roughly 20% below the offer price, according to the reports cited by Reuters and Bloomberg. The companies extended the “put up or shut up” deadline to August 3 at 5 p.m. London time. Castlelake says it intends to support easyJet’s future growth and fleet modernisation, which relies on an Airbus A320-family fleet and valuable landing slots in London, Milan, and Geneva. Financial pressure remains evident, with FY2026 first-half EPS at -£0.501.