The subsidiary of the French bank, ALD, takes over the European leader in the rental and management of automobile fleets. This profitable activity whets the appetite of banks.
This is the first major merger of the year. And it takes place in a booming sector, that of car leasing. Thursday, ALD, a subsidiary of Société Générale, announced the acquisition of the European number one in this vehicle rental activity for a fixed period (with option to buy or not), the Dutch LeasePlan. An acquisition expected for weeks. The French will pay 4.9 billion euros in shares and cash (2 billion euros) to LeasePlan shareholders who hoped to obtain up to 10 billion euros.
Read alsoBig bang on the long-term car rental market
Called NewALD, this new giant in car leasing and vehicle fleet management for businesses will be twice as large. It will manage a fleet of 3.5 million vehicles in Europe, whereas before the operation, ALD had 1.7 million and LeasePlan 1.8 million. It will largely dominate its sector in Europe.
Little known to the general public, these rental companies have in a few years become key players in …
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