Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank (SuMi Trust), one of Japan’s top financial institutions, and Novus Aviation Capital, a leading global aircraft leasing platform, have launched a $200-million aircraft leasing fund.

Novus is co-sponsor in Ortus Aircraft Leasing Fund and will provide its aircraft lease management services to the fund through its global platform.

Ortus is designed to capture the demand from Japanese institutional investors and will consist of a portfolio of global airlines and commercial aircraft manufactured by Boeing and Airbus. The fund will predominantly focus on sales and leaseback equity investments, said a statement.

Ortus is Latin for ‘rising’ and represents the emergence of Japan’s leading financial institutions, such as SuMi Trust, into the fast-growing aviation industry. This will be SuMi Trust’s first sponsorship of an equity aircraft leasing fund.

“After successfully growing our expertise and lending portfolio in the aviation industry, we continue to be confident that this industry, with the right risk management, will see further growth and offer sound investment opportunities,” stated Kengo Noguchi, managing executive officer at SuMi Trust.

Safwan Kuzbari, president and CEO of Novus, said: “We are delighted that a reputed international institution like SuMi Trust, which has already established a significant presence in the aviation finance arena, has chosen to sponsor this fund. These initiatives continue to underscore Novus’ ability to be a frontrunner in the aviation space with a keen understanding of the global aviation market and investment trends.”

The announcement of the new funding initiative follows another industry-pioneering mezzanine fund called Tamweel Aviation Finance launched in 2013, sponsored by Airbus, Development Bank of Japan and Nord LB.

Novus is an independent, privately-held aircraft leasing platform, focused on investing in commercial aircraft assets. Established over 22 years ago, the Novus team operates out of its four global offices in the Middle East, Europe and Asia. The company currently co-owns and manages aircraft-related projects worth about $3 billion.  - TradeArabia News Service