Element Financial announced that the United States Federal Trade Commission has granted early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (“HSR Act”) with respect to the Company’s pending acquisition of the U.S.-based fleet management operations of GE Capital.

As previously announced on June 29, 2015, Element and GE Capital entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which Element would acquire GE Capital’s fleet management operations in the U.S., Mexico, Australia and New Zealand (the “GE Fleet Acquisition”) for an all-cash purchase price of C$8.6 billion. Termination of the HSR Act waiting period satisfies one of the conditions to closing the proposed transaction. Subject to the satisfaction of the other customary closing conditions, the U.S. and Mexican transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2015 and the Australian and New Zealand transaction in the fourth quarter of 2015.

In keeping with the stated operating policies of the Company to match its assets and liabilities, the Company also confirmed that the proceeds from the equity financing which closed on May 29, 2015, were concurrently hedged into US dollars on that same date while the bank financed portion of the GE Fleet Acquisition purchase price was hedged with respect to both currency and interest rates concurrent with the transaction announcement on June 29, 2015.