China's Bohai Leasing Co on Tuesday said it would buy 20 percent of US-listed Avolon Holdings Ltd for $429 million, the latest acquisition by a unit of aviation and shipping conglomerate HNA Group.

The purchase would be HNA's biggest in logistics since the $1 billion acquisition of marine container leasing company GE SeaCo in 2011, and it would provide access to a global aircraft leasing market that is now dominated by GE Capital and AerCap Holdings NV.

"This investment in Avolon will bring Bohai an increasing presence in the global aircraft leasing sector and Bohai will have a strong interest in benefiting from Avolon's profitable growth," Bohai CEO Chris Jin said in a statement.

Shares of Bohai rose by the 10 percent daily limit on Tuesday, compared with a 2 percent gain in the broader market.

Chinese leasing firms, mostly backed by State-owned banks, have been expanding in recent years, as large carriers such as Hainan Airlines Co Ltd, Air China Ltd, China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd and China Southern Airlines Co Ltd expand their domestic and global networks.

Aircraft maker Boeing Co has estimated that China will need more than 6,000 new aircraft over the next 20 years.

Bohai parent HNA owns shipping and aerospace companies including Hainan Airlines, and it has been buying logistics and hotel assets to expand globally.

Avalon sells aircraft leasing and lease management services to airlines and aircraft investors. The Dublin-based company has a fleet of more than 260 aircraft serving 56 customers in 33 countries and regions.

Those customers include American Airlines Group Inc, Air France KLM SA and Ryanair Holdings Plc.

Bohai's cash tender of $26 for each Avolon share represents a 14.5 percent premium to the stock's volume-weighted average price in the previous week and a 30 percent premium to its IPO price of $20 in December, according to a joint statement from Bohai and Avolon.

The offer is open to all Avolon shareholders and will be launched at the end of this month after approval from Bohai's shareholders, the two companies said, noting that directors of both companies support the deal.

Previously, sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp and State-owned Aviation Industry Corp of China jointly considered a takeover of Avolon, but those talks ended in October.