EasyJet shares jumped 3.5% to trade at 521.6p after U.S. investment firm Castlelake LP went public with a cash takeover proposal valuing the airline at
Castlelake disclosed a cash offer of 625 pence per share for easyJet, representing a £4.74 billion bid, after the airline's board had privately rejected three non-binding approaches. The firm first approached easyJet on June 12 with a 560 pence-per-share proposal, which the board turned down on June 16. A second proposal, at 600 pence per share, was also declined, and a third approach at 625 pence, submitted on June 20, was rejected by the board on June 21.
After those private refusals, Castlelake chose to make the 625 pence proposal public so that easyJet shareholders could assess the offer directly and communicate their views to the board in advance of a "put-up or shut-up" deadline set for 5pm London time on June 26, 2026. The firm said the public disclosure was aimed at enabling shareholders to relay their opinions ahead of that deadline.
Castlelake noted that the proposed price exceeds any easyJet closing share price since February 2022 and is higher than all analyst price targets published since the airline's interim trading update in April. The bid is backed by Peter Bellew, the former chief executive of Malaysia Airlines. Castlelake is based in Minneapolis, manages roughly $38 billion in assets, and said it has invested more than $24 billion in aviation since 2005.
Alongside the cash offer, Castlelake indicated it plans to present shareholders with a partial equity option that would allow some investors to retain an interest in easyJet if it were taken private. The firm also said it had devised a structure intended to comply with European airline ownership rules through partnerships with aviation executives.
The disclosure from Castlelake arrived as the FTSE 100 opened marginally lower, down just over one point at around 10,362. London equities were positioned to start the week only modestly higher overall, with broader market drivers including an expected announcement on a timetable for Prime Minister Keir Starmer's departure, the recent US market holiday for Juneteenth and reports that weekend talks with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz were making progress.
Brent crude prices fell after statements from Qatar and Pakistan that Washington and Tehran had agreed on a roadmap for a final deal and measures to protect shipping. That decline in Brent provided a mild tailwind for airline names, which are sensitive to fuel costs.
EasyJet's main competitors in the European low-cost sector, including Ryanair and International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG), have also been operating in a volatile fuel-cost environment in recent months. The combination of a clearly stated takeover premium and the looming regulatory deadline created a near-term catalyst for easyJet's stock to outperform a broadly directionless UK market.
With Castlelake required to either make a formal offer or withdraw by June 26, investors are pricing in the possibility that public pressure and shareholder feedback could prompt further engagement between the bidder and easyJet's board. The situation remains contingent on developments before the put-up-or-shut-up deadline.