General Motors’ acquisition of AmeriCredit Corp. will close today, after AmeriCredit’s stockholders approved the transaction Wednesday. AmeriCredit will be renamed General Motors Financial Company, Inc. (GM Financial), and will start operations today.
With GM’s purchase of AmeriCredit, the automaker will now have its own captive lender, which will help it provide more auto loans and leases to shoppers, especially those with less-than-perfect credit. GM says a new regional auto lease program will be launched by the end of the first quarter of 2011.
GM has struggled to increase vehicle sales after its former finance arm, GMAC (now Ally), stopped giving auto loans to shoppers with bad credit. AmeriCredit’s specialty is subprime car loans and lending to shoppers with credit scores of about 500 to 680. GM’s preferred prime car loan lender is still Ally Financial. Ally will continue to provide dealer financing and consumer car loans for prime credit scores.
"This acquisition allows GM to offer an enhanced range of solutions for our customers and dealers, and establishes an important strategic capability for GM," said GM Vice Chairman and CFO Chris Liddell, in a statement. "The speed by which this transaction occurred is evidence of how we are running GM today. We identified an opportunity and moved quickly to provide solutions for customers and dealers."
"While the name is changing, our commitment to our customers and dealers remains paramount," said GM Financial President and CEO Dan Berce. "We are excited to become a member of the GM family and look forward to the new opportunities this provides us."
With GM’s acquisition of AmeriCredit complete, shoppers with bad credit might have an easier time getting approved for a car loan for a GM vehicle.
