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Eversholt Rail Group
Eversholt Rail Group is a British rolling stock company that, along with Angel Trains and Porterbrook, is one of the firms created from the privatisation of British Rail. Formed in March 1994, the firm was privatised the following year via a £580 million management buyout.
Sold to Midland Bank and renamed twice (Forward Trust and HSBC Rail), it operated primarily in the UK market, although the latter was active in the European leasing market in the 2000s, after the UK business had been split off and sold. Subsequently, the European leasing business was sold to rival leasing Beacon Rail and what had been the UK part was then also ultimately also purchased by Beacon Rail, later - effectively re-merging the operations.
Involved in supplying 28 British Rail Class 395 high speed train sets under a £250 million contract, HSBC Rail also submitted an unsolicited and dismissed response to the Intercity Express Programme. During the 2010s, it focused on either selling or retrofitting ageing elements of its rolling stock fleet.
After being rebranded back to Eversholt Rail Group in 2010 and being sold to private financial companies, it was acquired five years later by CK Hutchison Holdings and Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings.
In January 2026, ERG was acquired by Beacon Rail. It was then made a part of Beacon.
Eversholt Rail Group was established on 21 March 1994 as a subsidiary of British Rail in preparation for the privatisation of British Rail. It was named after Eversholt Street in London near Euston station in which British Rail's offices were located. During November 1995, British Rail sold its subsidiary via a management buyout in exchange for £580 million; this price was subsequently criticised for being undervalued.
Reported in February 1997 at a cost of £726.5 million, Midland Bank acquired Eversholt, whose portfolio consisted of 4,000 electric locomotives and passenger multiple units. After being renamed Forward Trust a year later, it was renamed again in November 1999, this time to HSBC Rail, as part of a rebranding by its parent company HSBC.
In 2000, HSBC Rail leased its first rolling stock outside of the United Kingdom via a financing arrangement on two EMD JT42CWRs for Swedish freight operator TGOJ Trafik. However, during 2009, the company ultimately opted to entirely withdraw from the European market; to this end, it sold its fleet of twenty EMD JT42CWR locomotives to Beacon Rail.
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Eversholt Rail Group
Eversholt Rail Group is a British rolling stock company that, along with Angel Trains and Porterbrook, is one of the firms created from the privatisation of British Rail. Formed in March 1994, the firm was privatised the following year via a £580 million management buyout.
Sold to Midland Bank and renamed twice (Forward Trust and HSBC Rail), it operated primarily in the UK market, although the latter was active in the European leasing market in the 2000s, after the UK business had been split off and sold. Subsequently, the European leasing business was sold to rival leasing Beacon Rail and what had been the UK part was then also ultimately also purchased by Beacon Rail, later - effectively re-merging the operations.
Involved in supplying 28 British Rail Class 395 high speed train sets under a £250 million contract, HSBC Rail also submitted an unsolicited and dismissed response to the Intercity Express Programme. During the 2010s, it focused on either selling or retrofitting ageing elements of its rolling stock fleet.
After being rebranded back to Eversholt Rail Group in 2010 and being sold to private financial companies, it was acquired five years later by CK Hutchison Holdings and Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings.
In January 2026, ERG was acquired by Beacon Rail. It was then made a part of Beacon.
Eversholt Rail Group was established on 21 March 1994 as a subsidiary of British Rail in preparation for the privatisation of British Rail. It was named after Eversholt Street in London near Euston station in which British Rail's offices were located. During November 1995, British Rail sold its subsidiary via a management buyout in exchange for £580 million; this price was subsequently criticised for being undervalued.
Reported in February 1997 at a cost of £726.5 million, Midland Bank acquired Eversholt, whose portfolio consisted of 4,000 electric locomotives and passenger multiple units. After being renamed Forward Trust a year later, it was renamed again in November 1999, this time to HSBC Rail, as part of a rebranding by its parent company HSBC.
In 2000, HSBC Rail leased its first rolling stock outside of the United Kingdom via a financing arrangement on two EMD JT42CWRs for Swedish freight operator TGOJ Trafik. However, during 2009, the company ultimately opted to entirely withdraw from the European market; to this end, it sold its fleet of twenty EMD JT42CWR locomotives to Beacon Rail.