Irish aircraft leasing firm Avolon Holdings is being sold to a unit of the Chinese aviation and shipping conglomerate HNA for about $2.5 billion.
Bohai Leasing is paying $31 per share in the deal that includes the assumption of debt and has a total enterprise value of about $7.6 billion.
The Dublin-based company owned or managed 152 aircraft and had more than 100 more on order as of June.
HNA is China’s fourth-largest aviation group and has interests in airlines such as Hong Kong Airlines and Hainan Airlines.
The two companies had been in negotiations about a deal since July and shares of Avolon have risen more than 20% since the talks began, the BBC reported.
Avolon chairman, Denia Nayden, said: “We believe Bohai will enhance Avolon’s profile, positioning and relationships in the Chinese aviation market – a market which we believe offers one of the most compelling growth opportunities in global aviation over the next two decades.”
Bohai chief executive, Chris Jin, added: “Avolon is a leader in the aircraft leasing industry with a proven team and platform.
“Our vision at Bohai is to build each of our transportation finance businesses into global leaders.
“Avolon has delivered remarkable growth over the past five years to become a leading industry franchise with a distinct business model, and the company is a strong complement to our existing investment in the aircraft leasing sector.”
The deal is expected to be finalised by the first quarter of next year.