GE Nears $4.7 Billion Deal to Sell Japan Unit to SMFG

TOKYO—General Electric Co. is close to a deal to sell its Japanese commercial-lending business to Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group's leasing arm for $4.7 billion, according to people familiar with the situation.

GE had winnowed the bidders to SMFG's leasing arm and Japanese lender Shinsei Bank in November, a person familiar with the situation said earlier. The price tag for the business is 575 billion Japanese yen ($4.7 billion) including debt, the people said. The deal is expected to be announced in the near future, they said.

SMFG, Japan's second-largest bank by market capitalization after Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., bought GE's European private-equity financing business for about $2.2 billion in July. The financial group's leasing operation is known as Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing.

As part of its global plan to unwind its GE Capital financing business, GE put the Japanese business up for sale this year, and several Japanese financial institutions expressed interest.

GE's commercial-finance operations in Japan comprise several divisions, including direct lending to industrial companies purchasing big-ticket equipment such as heavy machinery. It also offers vendor financing, helping manufacturers provide smaller businesses with financing.

One particularly attractive business is a fleet-management operation that helps large Japanese companies, such as trucking and logistics operations, finance and manage ownership of trucks and automobiles. GE's aviation financing business isn't included in the sale.

Write to Rick Carew at [e-mail] and Atsuko Fukase at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 08, 2015 23:55 ET (04:55 GMT)

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