Star Leasing Company, a provider of trailer leasing and maintenance services and a portfolio company of I Squared Capital, signed an agreement to combine with Commercial Trailer Leasing (CTL), a trailer lessor with a fleet size of more than 19,000 assets serving both national and regional account customers throughout the U.S. In conjunction with Star Leasing’s recent combination with North East Trailer Services (NETS), a trailer lessor with a fleet of more than 10,000 trailers, the combined company will have a combined fleet size of approximately 55,000 trailers by the end of the year with branches in the Northeast, Midwest, Southeast and Western regions of the U.S. The combined company will provide services including rentals, maintenance, trailer sales and integrated leasing to its customers, predominantly under long-term contracts.

“Through organic growth and tuck-in acquisitions, Star Leasing has more than tripled in size with over $200 million of EBITDA. This is an important milestone in our plan to build the leading North American trailer lessor and leverages I Squared’s expertise in platform building,” Gautam Bhandari, chief investment officer and managing partner at I Squared Capital, said. “The combined business will be one of the largest service providers in North America, with a leading suite of customers, a sizable fleet and a diversified footprint across the region.”

“We are thrilled to welcome CTL and NETS to the Star Leasing family,” Steve Jackson, CEO of Star Leasing, said. “These acquisitions mark a significant milestone in our growth journey and will enhance our ability to deliver best-in-class trailer leasing services to our combined customer base.”

“We are excited to partner with Star, NETS and I Squared Capital in this new chapter,” David Eisen, CEO of CTL, said. “Our shared focus on providing the best, most tailored services to our customers will advance our go-forward strategy and help us to deliver enhanced and expanded trailer leasing solutions. We look forward to continuing to execute on our national account-focused business model, growing the nationwide refrigerated segment and remaining a significant shareholder in the combined business.”

“This acquisition is a big win for all the stakeholders involved, including our customers, vendors and employees,” Duff Sorensen, founder and president of NETS, said. “The combination will allow our customers and employees to benefit from a larger trailer leasing platform with greater resources to support growth.”

The combined company will be led by Jackson, Eisen and Gregg Gottsegen as managing partners. The combined company’s board of directors will include representatives from Star Leasing, CTL, NETS and I Squared Capital.

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher served as legal advisor to I Squared Capital and Star Leasing for both transactions, while Perella Weinberg Partners served as financial advisor to I Squared Capital and Star Leasing for the CTL transaction. Evercore served as financial advisor and Scudder Law Firm served as legal advisor to CTL. Frohman and Associates served as legal advisor to NETS.