Independent trading firm Oriental Trading Group Inc. has a deal for you.
The firm is seeking a $2 billion transaction to buy up all of the shares of New York City’s oldest public company, the MTA.
The deal, which would create the largest public company buyback in history, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The transaction is the latest in a string of deals by Oriental to acquire businesses and companies since it became the biggest public company in the U.S. in 2002.
It is also the latest sign that Oriental is gaining market dominance as a public company with a global footprint.
Oriental’s acquisition is a “watershed for the industry” because it would help the company to scale up, said Michael Kocher, a partner at the law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz who specializes in public companies.
The New York Times first reported the deal.
The stock rose 1 percent to $38.97 on Friday.
The Times said the deal could close as early as the first half of 2021.
In its most recent regulatory filing, Oriental said it expects to pay $1.5 billion in cash to acquire shares in New York’s MTA and other entities over a 10-year period.
The company also plans to use proceeds to reduce its debt, the filing said.
It also said that Orientals purchase of MTA stock will be contingent on the company completing its $1 billion debt restructuring.
Orientals board of directors will decide the terms of the transaction and will determine whether to sell the MTA, the filings said.
Orienters valuation of New Rochelle-based New York-based Orientals is based on the value of the company as of the date of the deal, according a person close to the matter, and does not include other transaction details, the person said.
The sale could result in a windfall for Orientals shareholders and could bring the company closer to achieving its financial goal of raising $1 trillion by 2025, Orientals CEO Jeff Dolan said in an interview.
The MTA’s shares were down $1 at $40.25 in early trading Friday, after rising as much as 7.3 percent in early February.
The city’s largest public transit system is the largest provider of public transit for the city’s more than 5 million residents.
Its share price has dropped more than 90 percent since 2004.
The subway system serves about 5 million people a day and has a $1-billion operating deficit.
The financial woes of the MTA are the focus of the presidential election in New Jersey, where Gov.
Chris Christie has been criticized for failing to stem the recession.
Christie is running for re-election next year.
Dolan is currently seeking to win re-term as New York mayor.
He’s also in talks with a potential bid to become president.