The €186bn Dutch asset manager PGGM and the €110bn Danish statutory pension fund ATP have bought minority stakes in Dutch car-lease company LeasePlan.
They made the investment as part of an international group, which purchased full ownership from Global Mobility Holding – jointly owned by Volkswagen Group and Germany-based Fleet Investments – in a €3.7bn transaction.
The consortium included the sovereign wealth funds of Abu Dhabi (ADIA) and Singapore (GIC), as well as institutional investment funds managed by TDR Capital and Goldman Sachs’s Merchant Banking Division.
PGGM spokesman Maurice Wilbrink said: “We consider LeasePlan as a very promising company with a solid growth strategy for added value.”
PGGM, asset manager for the €166bn healthcare scheme PFZW, cited its participation as “a long-term investment with an attractive risk/return ratio”.
It said it would supply one of the consortium’s additional two members on the supervisory board of the car-lease firm, and that the group would share its expertise with the company’s management.
Wilbrink declined to provide details about PGGM’s stake or about expected returns.
The €19.7bn company, however, reported a net profit of 14% over 2014.
On behalf of the consortium, Eric-Jan Vink, head of PGGM’s private equity team, said: “We are investing in the future of a company with an unmatched portfolio of market-leading assets, highly knowledgeable and dedicated staff and a sound strategy under a highly experienced management.”
According to LeasePlan, the group intended to finance the acquisition through an equity investment of approximately 50% of the purchase price, a mandatory convertible note of €480m and a cash-pay debt facility of €1.55bn.
Founded in 1963, the company has become a global market leader, with operations in 32 countries and total fleet management of 1.4m vehicles.
It employs 6,800 staff in total.
The deal should be concluded by the end of this year, pending regulatory approval.
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