Apollo Global Management Tops Castlelake with $7.26B EasyJet Takeover Bid
Shares in the British low-cost airline EasyJet surged on Friday morning after the Luton-based carrier’s board of directors announced that it had accepted a surprise rival takeover bid by the U.S. investment firm Apollo Global Management, which values EasyJet at £5.41 billion ($7.26 billion). The offer is worth approximately 5.2% more than the offer in principle that EasyJet’s board accepted from Minneapolis-based Castlelake on Sunday. In a statement filed on the London Stock Exchange, the airline said Apollo had offered to pay £7.15 per easyJet share. In contrast, Castlelake had previously agreed to pay £6.90 per share in order to take the airline private. “Apollo has followed easyJet for many years and continues to regard it as one of the most attractive businesses in the global aviation sector and a highly differentiated franchise with significant long-term growth potential,” the investment firm said on Friday. “Apollo believes in easyJet's existing strategy of evolving and strengthening the low-cost carrier model, most notably through upgauging the fleet, enhancing the ancillary and loyalty offering, and scaling Holidays into a structurally differentiated earnings stream,” the statement added. Like Castlelake, New York-based Apollo has previous experience in funding the aviation industry. Founded in 1990, the company has bought and traded a broad portfolio of companies, including those in the hospitality and leisure industries, as well as media and telecoms. Last November, Apollo completed a $745 million senior secured financing of Virgin Atlantic's portfolio of take-off and landing slots at London Heathrow. The firm has also provided funding to the Air France-KLM Group, including its Flying Blue frequent flyer program, and to the ultra-low-cost airline Sun Country. Apollo says that should it make a formal offer to buy EasyJet and secure rights to the company, it intends to continue operating the carrier in the form it is today. Friday’s announcement does not, however, signal a formal offer. Instead, it merely means that EasyJet’s board of directors would, in principle, recommend this offer to shareholders, who would have the final say in whether EasyJet was sold to Apollo. Founded by Greek-Cypriot entrepreneur Stelio Haji-Ioannou in 1995, EasyJet has grown into one of Europe’s largest low-cost airlines, and the Haji-Ioannou family trust remains the largest single shareholder in the company. In recent years, however, EasyJet’s financial performance has lagged that of its main rival, Ryanair. In effect, its assets, such as airplanes, airport gates, and takeoff and landing slots, are currently worth more than the value of the company’s shares. Both Castlelake and Apollo have signalled that their intent in buying EasyJet isn’t to dismantle the airline and sell these assets, but rather to improve its financial performance. This would likely be in the same way that activist investor Elliott is attempting to transform the financial performance of Southwest Airlines in the United States. Castlelake first publicly announced it was interested in EasyJet in May 2026, although at the time, it hadn’t yet even made an offer to the airline’s board of directors. On June 12, Castlelake initially proposed an offer to buy EasyJet's 758 million shares at a price of £5.60 per share. The proposal was rejected on June 16. Castlelake returned just a day later to propose an offer price of £6.00 per share. EasyJet's board rejected this proposal on June 20. Within hours, Castlelake said it would increase its offer price to £6.25 per share. The board rejected the deal but agreed to open up its books to Castlelake. Finally, on July 5, EasyJet said it had agreed in principle to an offer price of £6.90 per share from Castlelake. What seemed odd at the time was that Castlelake’s interest in EasyJet hadn’t seemingly stoked attention from a rival bidder. Analysts were quick to ask what Castlelake saw in EasyJet that no one else seemed to see. Well, we now have the answer. Behind closed doors, Apollo was preparing a rival bid, which was accepted by the EasyJet board on July 8 and publicly announced on Friday. What happens next? Apollo has yet to make a formal offer to buy EasyJet. If and when it does, it’s not up to the board of directors to clear the deal. Instead, they will recommend the deal to shareholders who will make the final decision. EasyJet shares surged 13.13% on Friday morning, reaching 665.20 pence per share, its highest share price since 2022. What to look out for? A potential bidding frenzy that could pit Apollo against Castlelake, along with the possibility of other suitors joining the race to acquire EasyJet.