EasyJet succumbs to foreign buyer after agreeing £5bn deal

EasyJet succumbs to a foreign buyer after agreeing a £5bn deal, with Castlelake moving to a preliminary sale price of 690p per share. On Sunday, the easyJet board said it had reached an agreement to sell the airline to Castlelake, valuing the business at £5.2bn, up from Castlelake’s prior 650p bid. Castlelake, backed by American financial resources, has until Aug 3 to complete the paperwork. Under the deal terms, Castlelake would take a 49% stake, while Brookfield Asset Management and Irish executives Peter Bellew and Mark Breen would hold the remaining 51%. easyJet’s EU rules require European majority ownership and control because the carrier continues to operate under European aviation requirements. The agreement follows weeks of contested negotiations after easyJet rejected multiple lower bids and Castlelake launched a hostile approach to enlist shareholders, including founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.