EasyJet, one of Europe's largest airlines, is at the centre of a bidding war between two US private equity firms. On Friday 10 July 2026, the airline's board said it was "minded to recommend" a £5.7bn all-cash offer from Apollo Global Management, just days after agreeing in principle to a rival £5.5bn bid from Castlelake. The surprise twist means that for the first time, the no-frills carrier that transformed UK air travel could soon be owned by American investors.
A takeover bid is an offer to buy enough shares in a company to gain control. In this case, Apollo is proposing to pay £7.15 per share for easyJet, beating Castlelake's £6.90 per share. EasyJet's board has switched its recommendation from Castlelake to Apollo, though neither deal is final. Apollo must make a firm bid by 17:00 on 7 August 2026, while Castlelake's deadline is 3 August. The airline employs more than 19,000 people, flies around 1,200 routes across 35 European countries, and was founded by Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou in 1995. Sir Stelios and his family still own about a 15% stake.
“EasyJet's takeover battle: who's bidding, why, and what it means for passengers.”
EasyJet's appeal lies in its profitability, large fleet, and valuable take-off and landing slots at major airports like Gatwick and Paris Charles de Gaulle – slots that can be worth tens of millions of pounds each. Analysts say Apollo is particularly attracted to easyJet's fast-growing holidays business, which generates higher margins and more predictable revenues than airline tickets alone. Susannah Streeter of Wealth Club noted that the carrier has "built a resilient European network, a strong balance sheet and, crucially, a fast-growing holidays business". Apollo has signalled it would back easyJet's current strategy and management, and is not looking to break up the company.
For UK passengers, the immediate impact is minimal. Conroy Gaynor of Bloomberg Intelligence said that while Apollo has backed easyJet's growth model, any cost savings may not necessarily translate to lower fares. Susannah Streeter added that for now it is "business as usual" with flights, bookings and loyalty schemes unaffected while any deal works through regulatory processes. The key change would be ownership: easyJet would delist from the stock market and become a private company, meaning shareholders – including the founder – could sell or, under Apollo's offer, choose to remain invested.
Q: Why does easyJet want to be taken over? EasyJet's board has not actively sought a takeover, but it is legally required to consider any bid that offers good value to shareholders. The board judged that both Castlelake's and Apollo's offers were at a level it would be minded to recommend, and it switched to Apollo because the price was higher. The airline has been "buffeted recently by higher fuel costs and geopolitical turbulence", according to Susannah Streeter, making it a target for private equity firms that see long-term potential.
Q: Who are Apollo and Castlelake? Both are US investment firms that pool money from pension funds, endowments and wealthy individuals to buy companies. Apollo Global Management is one of the world's largest private equity firms, with hundreds of billions of dollars in assets. Castlelake is a smaller alternative asset manager. Their interest in easyJet reflects a trend of private equity firms acquiring airlines, particularly those with valuable assets like airport slots and strong holiday packages.
Q: What does this mean for easyJet's founder Sir Stelios? Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou and his family own about 15% of easyJet. If the Apollo bid succeeds, he could sell his stake and receive approximately £855m. However, Apollo's offer also allows him to remain a shareholder even after the company delists. The founder has not publicly commented on the bids. Apollo intends to keep an existing brand licence agreement under which Sir Stelios receives royalties from the airline.
The next key date is 3 August 2026, when Castlelake's deadline to make a firm offer expires. If Castlelake does not make a binding bid by then, it will be out of the race. Apollo then has until 17:00 on 7 August to either confirm a firm offer or walk away. Even if Apollo makes a firm bid, the deal will still require regulatory approvals, including checks on foreign ownership of airlines – EU rules require European airlines to be majority-owned by investors within the region. The outcome is uncertain, but for now UK travellers can book their flights as usual.