Irvine-Based Avco Acquires Household Financial

Avco Financial Services Inc. said Tuesday it has purchased Household Financial Co. of Australia Ltd.

The acquisition is a subsidiary of Household International Inc., a financial services company based in Prospect Heights, Ill. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

Richard Thomas, Avco senior vice president, will head House Finance Co. of Australia. Thomas was formerly managing director of Avco’s Australia division before returning to the United States three years ago.

Avco, based in Irvine, is a unit of Textron Inc., a Providence, R.I., corporation with has interests in aviation, auto parts and financial services.