Private equity firm Certares has put roughly €300 million behind Trenitalia France, and its founder Greg O'Hara thinks that money buys something more valuable than a stake: a head start through the Channel Tunnel.
Certares, which O'Hara founded in 2012, has a long record of backing travel businesses — agencies, cruise lines, car rental and airlines. The train move came in December, when the firm agreed to buy into Trenitalia France, the French arm of Italy's state railway FS. In August, that company ordered 19 high-speed trains from Hitachi, ten earmarked for a Paris–London service targeted to launch by 2029. Crucially, Trenitalia is one of Hitachi's largest customers, which means it can jump the delivery queue while rivals wait until 2030 or later for new trains.
O'Hara's logic is straightforward. Door-to-door, a three-hour train between Milan and Rome often beats a one-hour flight, and passengers choose whatever is easier. Electric trains also tick the ESG box at a time when profitable green investments in Europe are scarce — France has even banned short flights on routes where the train trip is under two and a half hours. Add in Certares' French distribution network through Marietton and Voyageurs du Monde, plus Amex GBT globally, and the firm sees a way to push volumes onto its own trains.
The race to London is the interesting part. Both Trenitalia France and Virgin want to run direct Paris–London services, and each needs three approvals: French, British and tunnel. Virgin won the London maintenance depot but, as of now, has no confirmed train order. Certares lost the London depot but secured one in Paris with French government backing — and trains can be serviced at either end of the line. Virgin holds a conditional letter from British authorities; Certares is working on its own. O'Hara's bet is blunt: whoever delivers rolling stock first gets approvals first, and right now that's his side.
He also ruled out creating a dedicated fund for European high-speed rail. The €300 million comes from the firm's existing fund with co-investment around it, and interest was heavy — European family offices and institutions wanted more allocation than was available.
Beyond Europe, O'Hara is eyeing high-density city pairs elsewhere. China runs excellent trains but is hard to invest in; the US has been inconsistent. The Middle East intrigues him, particularly the announced high-speed link between Doha and Riyadh, which will need an operator.
For travellers, this is a story about cheaper, more frequent options on one of Europe's busiest routes. Eurostar has had the Paris–London corridor largely to itself since competition ended; a state-backed Italian operator with its own trains and deep distribution could shake up fares and schedules well before 2029. Virgin's rival service would double the disruption. If you fly that route regularly, the odds that you'll soon be comparing two or three train operators just got better. O'Hara discusses the bet at the Skift Global Forum in New York, September 22–24, 2026.