EasyJet shareholders approve £5.7bn takeover
PAEasyJet shareholders have approved the airline's £5.7bn takeover by private equity firm Apollo, paving the way for it to fall into US ownership.
The Luton-based carrier said 97.07% of shareholders voted in favour of the takeover by the US investment group at a meeting of its investors on Wednesday.
According to the airline the deal will be completed by the end of March next year.
In August EasyJet's board agreed to Apollo's offer of 715p a share, the US investment group also owns The Restaurant Group, which operates Wagamama.
The deal will end the company's more than 26 years on the London stock market and see EasyJet fall into US ownership.
The low-cost airline is understood to be consulting on proposals that could see up to about 50 head office roles axed out of a 2,300-strong team.
Apollo secured the deal after winning in a takeover tussle with US investment firm Castlelake.
Castlelake had previously made a £5.5bn, or 690p a share, proposal to buy EasyJet, but walked away from the bidding war in August.
EasyJet was founded by Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou in 1995 as a low-cost air travel alternative and it has since expanded to be one of the largest networks across Europe.
Sir Stelios and his family, who own just over 15% of the business, have backed the takeover.
Do you have a story suggestion for Beds, Herts or Bucks? Contact us below.
Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.