ARVAL has completed the acquisition of GE Capital’s European fleet management activity to lead full service leasing in Europe with multiple brands – as well as sharing global leadership.

The scope of this transaction as Arval becomes Europe’s leasing leader includes more than 160,000 vehicles in 12 European countries – three-quarters of which are in France, Germany and the UK – with total vehicle assets amounting to around €2.4billion.

Founded in 1989 and fully owned by BNP Paribas, Arval specialises in full service vehicle leasing delivered in 26 countries by over 5,000 employees, and in 21 others through a network of partners.

Arval’s total leased fleet adds up to 930.000 vehicles throughout the world (November 2015). Within BNP Paribas, Arval belongs to the Retail Banking core activity.

The transaction has been finalised after approvals from the European Commission and all other relevant regulatory authorities.

This deal is part of a global transaction in which Element Financial, Arval’s strategic partner in North America, has also finalised the acquisition of GE Capital Fleet Services’ businesses in the United States (closed at the end of August) and in Mexico, Australia and New Zealand (closed at the end of September).

As a result, the Element-Arval Global Alliance now becomes a global leader with a fleet of more than 3 million vehicles in 47 countries.

Arval CEO Philippe Bismut said: “We are very happy to welcome colleagues and clients of European GE Capital fleet services. Our clients will now benefit from greater geographical coverage and we’ll be redoubling our efforts to ensure our service quality and provide them with expert advice.

“With the strength of BNP Paribas and the expertise of our local teams, Arval now becomes the number one full-service vehicle leasing specialist in Europe. In addition, by enhancing our cooperation with Element Financial, we’re creating a stronger, more efficient worldwide network.”