Carlyle Group completes purchase of StandardAero
Repair and overhaul company StandardAero has been acquired by global investment firm The Carlyle Group.
The company was purchased for an undisclosed amount (estimated at approximately $5 billion – including debt) from Veritas Capital – the New York based private-equity firm.
The equity used to purchase StandardAero has come from a Carlyle investment fund worth $18.5 billion. The fund – Carlyle Partners VII – focuses on buy-out transactions in the US and was launched last year.
Additionally, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking Division, RBC Capital Markets LLC, Macquarie Capital, Barclays, Jefferies LLC, Nomura Securities and Goldman Sachs have agreed to provide debt financing for the transaction.
Adam J. Palmer, managing director of Carlyle Group said: “StandardAero has established itself as one of the true leaders in the MRO industry. We are excited to partner with the StandardAero team to continue supporting the company’s growth and industry leadership.”
Veritas Capital announced the sale of StandardAero to the Carlyle Group in December last year. Oddly enough, this is the second time that Carlyle Group has purchased StandardAero, having first acquired the MRO in 2004 and selling the company three years later to Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE). DAE then sold the company to Veritas Capital in 2015 for $2.1 billion.
As of 2019, StandardAero has more than 6,000 employees worldwide across 38 locations. It will be joining Carlyle’s portfolio of $216 billion assets under management.
“Joining The Carlyle Group is a great honor and we look forward to working with this distinguished and experienced ownership team,” said Russell Ford, CEO of StandardAero.