CIT to sell European rail leasing arm to VTG

CIT Group Inc. announced last week it reached an agreement to sell its European rail leasing business unit NACCO to German firm VTG Aktiengesellschaft for $890 million.
The deal includes NACCO’s fleet of 14,000 freight cars and its car investments made between Jan. 1, 2017, and the transaction’s closing date that could total $160 million.

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter pending customary closing conditions.

Headquartered in Paris, NACCO is CIT's last ongoing business outside of North America. The deal wouldn’t affect CIT Rail, which conducts business in the United States, Canada and Mexico, CIT officials said in a press release.

"This transaction represents another step in our evolution to simplify the company and focus on our core businesses," said CIT Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer Ellen Alemany. “As part of our transformation, we have been divesting its international operations and centering on its core commercial banking franchises, which are largely domestic."