EasyJet has agreed to a £5.7 billion takeover bid from Apollo, igniting a bidding war for the UK airline just days after it accepted a rival offer from US suitor Castlelake.
The Luton-based carrier confirmed it had reached an agreement in principle for Apollo's offer, which values EasyJet shares at £7.15 each. This significantly surpasses the £6.90-a-share proposal from rival US investment firm Castlelake, which had valued the airline's fully diluted share capital at £5.5 billion. Apollo's deal, to be paid with a combination of equity and debt, places EasyJet's value at approximately £5.7 billion.
EasyJet's board stated that Apollo's offer "delivers a superior outcome" for shareholders due to its higher cash value, and as such, they are "no longer minded to recommend the Castlelake proposal".
Apollo has also reportedly committed to valuing EasyJet's staff and preserving the brand, with no intention of making changes.
Apollo has until August 7 to present a formal offer for the airline.
What you need to know about EasyJet:
EasyJet has been around for more than 30 years and pioneered the UK’s budget air travel transformation.
Who founded easyJet?
Greek Cypriot entrepreneur Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou created the airline, which he named after writing ideas on a napkin.
After researching low-cost air travel in the US, he believed he could replicate the model in Europe.
EasyJet’s inaugural flight was from Luton to Glasgow on November 10 1995.
Tickets were available from £29, which easyJet described as being the same as the price of a pair of jeans.
When did easyJet float on the London Stock Exchange?
This happened on November 22 2000, just more than five years after its first flight.
It was initially valued at £777 million.
How many passengers fly with easyJet?
EasyJet carried a total of 93.4 million passengers in the year to the end of September 2025.
It operated nearly 576,000 flights in 2024/25.
It helped drive the growth of low-cost air travel, opening up foreign holiday destinations for millions more people.
It serves about 20 UK airports, carrying approximately 50 million passengers per year.
It is one of Europe’s largest airlines, with 355 aircraft operating 1,207 routes, serving 164 airports in 38 countries.
