Owners In Discussions To Sell Dutch And U.S. Branches Of LeasePlan

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LeasePlan Corporation, one of Europe’s biggest automobile leasing and fleet managers, said on March 31 that its owner, Global Mobility Holding, was in discussions regarding selling the Dutch company and its U.S. fleet management division to a group of investors.

The unidentified investors plan to finance the transaction with an equity investment representing at least 40 percent of the total purchase price, plus cash-and-debt facilities of 1.55 billion euros, or about $1.68 billion, LeasePlan said.

LeasePlan did not disclose the potential purchase price.

The investors are also in discussions regarding "an additional source of funding," the company said.

Global Mobility Holding is 50 percent owned by the German carmaker Volkswagen and 50 percent owned by the German private banker Friedrich von Metzler. LeasePlan was acquired by a consortium led by Volkswagen in 2004 for about 2 billion euros.

"LeasePlan emphasizes that these discussions may or may not result in an agreement," the company said on Tuesday in a news release.

LeasePlan first confirmed that its owners were discussing a possible sale of the company earlier in March.

None of the debt raised by the investors would be borrowed by LeasePlan, and the company would not be responsible for the repayment of such debt, LeasePlan said.

Any transaction or change of ownership would be subject to regulatory approval, in part because the company holds a banking license in the Netherlands.

LeasePlan, based in Almere, the Netherlands, leases 1.42 million vehicles and provides fleet and vehicle management services in 32 countries. It posted a profit of 372 million euros in 2014.  

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