EasyJet agreed to a £5.7bn takeover bid from Apollo Global Management, an American asset management firm. The deal values the British low-cost airline at more than £7 a share and follows a previous agreement with a different suitor.

EasyJet shares rose more than 5% in early trading on Thursday. This gain followed an 11% drop on Wednesday after reports emerged that the EU was preparing to tighten airline ownership rules. EasyJet’s share price had reached a four-year high of £5.88 on 8 May 2026 before closing at £3.94 on 28 May 2026.

The board originally accepted a £5.5bn bid from Castlelake. Apollo Global Management's proposed cash offer of £7.15 per share represents an 80% premium over the closing price on 28 May 2026. Barclays provided a letter of intent confirming confidence in arranging £4.2 billion in debt financing for the takeover, with Apollo covering the remaining equity via its funds.

EU rules require 51% local ownership of airlines. An unnamed EU official stated that a review of airline ownership would protect strategic autonomy and ensure control of regional airlines remains within Europe. Castlelake has named EU citizens as co-investors to address these requirements. Apollo Global Management has not explained how it plans to meet EU local ownership requirements.

EasyJet reported a pre-tax profit of £85m for the period between April and June. This figure compares to a pre-tax profit of £286m for the same period in the previous year. EasyJet's fuel costs increased by £105m during the reporting period.

Ryanair stated that the fuel price increase affected the cost of the 20% of fuel the airline needed for its fleet that was not hedged against price fluctuations. EasyJet fares were on average about 1% lower than a year ago.

Kenton Jarvis is the chief executive of EasyJet. "Pricing has been attractive, driving strong late booking demand for our flights and holidays," Jarvis said. He added expectations for continued momentum in the coming weeks.

"Our recent experience is that bookings become strong in the month of departure. So my expectation is that as we run through August bookings will be above where they were this time last year," Jarvis said.

He said the initial proposal for the EU review of airline ownership regulations is not expected until the end of 2026 or early 2027. He also said he expects the consultation process for the EU review to last two to three years.

Apollo Global Management, Inc. has $500 billion in assets under management as of 2026, positioning it as one of the largest global private equity firms. As of 2025, the firm had $840 billion of assets under management. The firm has prior experience in the aviation sector. In 2023, Apollo acquired a 35% stake in Delta Air Lines through its investment in the airline's preferred equity.