easyJet’s shareholders have given their approval to the acquisition of the low-cost airline by Apollo Global Management, for a total amount of £5.7 billion (€6,923.7 million).
Specifically, 97.07% of shareholders have backed the deal at an investors’ meeting held on Wednesday, as detailed in a statement.
easyJet’s intention is to complete the transaction before the end of the first quarter of 2027. At that point, the airline would stop trading on the London Stock Exchange, bringing to an end more than 25 years as a listed company.
In August, Apollo reached an agreement to take over the British low-cost airline, after several months of bids and counterbids in competition with Castlelake, which ultimately decided to drop out of the race.
At present, the main shareholder of easyJet is the founder’s family, Stelios Haji-Ioannou, which controls 15.3% of the capital. This family “will have a say on the board of directors in the future,” according to what its chief executive officer, Kenton Jarvi, confirmed.
As it is a U.S. firm, Apollo cannot assume absolute control of easyJet, since the airline is subject to British and European regulations, which require that most ownership and control rest with citizens of the region, meaning that the fund manager will need to have a local partner.