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A Chinese group agreed to buy 80.1 percent of American International Group Inc. (AIG)’s plane-leasing unit for $4.23 billion in the nation’s largest acquisition of a U.S. company.
The International Lease Finance Corp. acquirers, led by New China Trust Co. Chairman Weng Xianding, have an option to buy another 9.9 percent... The transaction, which values ILFC at $5.3 billion...
The acquisition gives the group control of the world’s second-largest aircraft lessor...
The transaction, which values ILFC at $5.3 billion, passes China Investment Corp.’s $3 billion purchase of a stake in Blackstone Group LP (BX) in 2007 as the biggest Chinese-U.S. deal.
The group investing in ILFC includes New China Trust, China Aviation Industrial Fund and P3 Investments Ltd., AIG said. China Life Insurance Co. (2628) and a unit of ICBC International Holdings Ltd., the investment banking arm of the world’s biggest bank, may also join once the deal is approved by regulators and the option to buy a further stake is exercised, it said.
The gains allow China Life to ... become the world's no. 2 insurer with a market value of $129 billion, behind American International Group's $186 billion...
3.02 billion yuan in illegal activities
China's audit office said it uncovered "improper and illegal activities" involving 3.02 billion yuan at two of the country's largest insurers, People's Insurance Co. of China Ltd. and China Life Insurance Co., during an audit of their 2009 books. They are charged with offences including the illegal sale of policies, overstating policy sales, improper claim settlements, illegal distributions of commissions and "grey income" - off-the-books gains, some of which company officials pocketed among themselves.
ICBC International Holdings Limited (“ICBC International”) is the wholly-owned HK subsidiary of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited (“ICBC”), and the sole investment banking platform of ICBC...
ICBC is the world’s largest bank in terms of market capitalization, customer deposit and profitability. ICBC International, the sole investment banking platform of ICBC...
Originally posted by ikonoklast
First, from an economic perspective you have to wonder if they are going to supply Boeing and Airbus planes, as ILFC currently does, or if this is a way to get Chinese planes into the world market long term.
Second, you have to wonder about whether the Chinese will just do the financials or whether they will ever have physical control of the planes. I would think that the US especially would have security concerns if the Chinese would have physical access to a high percentage of the planes of American airlines.
Anyone know if Air Force One is leased?