American Realty Capital Properties agreed to buy CapLease for $2.2 billion.

American Realty Capital agreed to pay $8.50 a share for CapLease’s common stock, or about $755 million, according to a release by the company.

Both companies’ boards of directors have unanimously approved the agreement.

Additionally, with respect to CapLease’s $1.2 billion of outstanding debt, American Realty Capital intends to assume $580 million and repay the balance.

“In an industry where size matters, ARCP combined with CapLease has managed to construct a combination that is of sufficient order of magnitude and financial strength so as to compare very favorably to its competitive set,” said Michael Well, president of American Realty Capital.

He added, “The company is positioned for ongoing growth in assets and earnings. ARCP’s stockholders remain in capable hands.  With this acquisition, ARCP will add over 70 properties to its portfolio, increasing the total number of properties to approximately 800 properties owned under long-term and medium-term leases to major commercial and retail tenants. By maintaining the integrity of ARCP’s capital structure, we remain well positioned to leverage this platform to continue to pursue additional accretive opportunities in the coming years.”