A consortium composed of Novus Aviation Capital, Development Bank of Japan, NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank and Boeing has launched a new junior debt fund to provide airlines and lessors with higher loan-to-value financing for the acquisition of Boeing manufactured aircraft.

Cedar Aviation Finance (CAF) will be managed by Novus and will provide junior and mezzanine loans to bridge the gap between equity and senior debt.

“We are delighted to work with global and long-standing institutions to launch this landmark venture, which we believe will serve an important market need,” said Hani Kuzbari, managing director at Novus.

“With continued traffic growth and aircraft prices on an upward trajectory, coupled with the importance of preserving cash for airlines and lessors alike, this new venture is expected to be a popular financing tool. The initial strategic group is composed of an OEM, two prominent financial institutions from Europe and Asia, and a leading aircraft leasing platform, offering a very strong value proposition.”

“We are excited about the launch of ‘Cedar Aviation Finance'. We believe that this strong and monumental partnership among Novus, Boeing, NORD/LB, and DBJ will support finance needs of many customers and lead the industry to a successful future,” said Masashi Kumagae, general manager at Development Bank of Japan Inc.

Oliver Gruenke, managing director and head of Origination for Aircraft Finance at NORD/LB commented: “If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old. And we evolved our business model. This innovative fund nicely proves the creativity and capability for financial evolution of its four founding partners. And: Understanding the needs of our customers, CAF has been tailored to create, provide and preserve value for airlines and lessors.”

“As we continue to see strong market demand for Boeing aircraft, Boeing is pleased to partner with industry leaders Novus, DBJ and NORD/LB to bring additional financing solutions for our customers around the world,” said Tim Myers, president of Boeing Capital Corporation.

CAF builds off of the market acceptance of similar financial products and the first transaction is expected to take place by the end of the third quarter this year. – TradeArabia News Service