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Asset Finance

Contact

Graham Tyler
Partner, London
T: +44.20.7847.9562
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Areas of Focus

Backed by over 65 years’ experience, Pillsbury’s Asset Finance team is a recognized leader in structuring, negotiating and closing transactions for assets, including aircraft, ships, rolling stock, containers and other capital assets.

From major banks, investors and traders to leasing companies, airlines and manufacturers, Pillsbury’s Asset Finance team acts on a wide range of structures and products, including operating and finance leases, stage payment and PDP financings, export credit financings, capital markets, and the sale and purchase of portfolios. Well known in the industry for completing novel transactions, our team has broad experience with cross-border financings of assets located and operated throughout the world, and we often handle large-scale transactions involving multiple jurisdictions.

Named by Chambers & Partners as one of the world’s leading aviation finance firms, Pillsbury has assisted clients in the financing or refinancing of commercial and corporate aircraft and spare aircraft engines and is world renowned for the number of aviation finance-related matters handled, their complexity and their value. Our Asset Finance team also has significant experience with locomotives, fleets of land-based vehicles, mining equipment and other capital assets, such as floating drilling rigs, satellites, drones, and telecommunications and manufacturing equipment. In recent years we have successfully negotiated and documented complex Ex-Im Bank-supported financings and have dealt with export credit agencies and government-supported programs, such as Japan Eximbank, Korea Ex-Im Bank, China Ex-Im Bank and BNDES.

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We regularly assist clients with:

  • Finance and Leasing
    • Secured credit facilities for lenders and airlines
    • Operating leases, both domestic and cross-border, for lessors and airlines
    • Export credit financings for guaranteed lenders, tax investors and airlines
    • Pre-delivery payment (PDP) financings for lenders and airlines
  • Asset Acquisitions and Dispositions
    • Aircraft and engine purchase agreements and related commercial contracts
    • Commercial and corporate aircraft trading
    • Acquisitions and dispositions of large equipment loan and lease portfolios
    • Negotiating settlements for aircraft delivery delays
    • Aerospace technology transfers and joint ventures
    • Private equity investments in the aerospace sector
  • Structured Finance
    • Pooled asset securitizations for issuers, underwriters and lenders
    • Intercreditor arrangements for senior, subordinated and equity participants
    • Leveraged and tax leases, including cross-border, synthetic and foreign currency leases
    • Credit-enhanced offerings, including liquidity facilities for EETCs and other structures
    • Secondary transactions, such as debt repackaging, receivables financings and risk-sharing programs
  • Restructurings and Enforcement
    • Restructuring debt and lease obligations for troubled airlines
    • Airline and other bankruptcy proceedings
    • Conducting foreclosures on collateral by public auction or private sale
    • Repossession of property in multiple jurisdictions
    • Managing and remarketing assets in conjunction with technical, insurance and appraisal professionals

Backed by leading practitioners in related fields such as taxation, aviation regulatory, restructuring, capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, international trade and licensing, corporate aviation, insurance, accident investigations, crisis management and litigation, we are able to provide comprehensive, integrated one-stop service to asset finance industry participants.

Our Asset Finance lawyers are highly regarded as thought leaders. Members of our team publish articles on new financing techniques, sit on standard-setting committees and speak at some of the many conferences, seminars, workshops and other events organized for the transportation finance community. These contributions are consistently recognized with awards and accolades by industry observers, including the prestigious Chambers & Partners, Airfinance Journal, The Legal 500, Global Trade Review and Trade Finance.

Representative Experience

  • Aviation Finance
    • Advised Smartwings in connection with its first ever Aircraft Finance Insurance Consortium (AFIC), supporting financing of three Boeing 737-8 aircraft. Awarded 2018 Structured Lease Deal of the Year by Airfinance Journal.
    • Represented Mizuho Securities USA Inc. as structuring agent and bookrunner on the $379 million debt placement and equity sale to Korean equity investor by Kestrel Aircraft Funding Limited, which acquired 18 commercial aircraft on lease to 15 airlines in 13 countries from affiliates of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) Ltd.
    • Represented World Star Aviation and Oaktree Capital Management in connection with a portfolio acquisition, warehouse financing and the Sprite 2017-1 Notes Offering. Awarded Airline Economics, 2018 Debt Deal of the Year.

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  • Represented SunExpress in a French tax lease financing of five Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Awarded 2016 ECA Deal of the Year by Airfinance Journal.
  • Represented Emirates regarding London Stock Exchange listing on the specialist fund market of an aircraft acquisition and leasing investment company, which was awarded 2016 Editor’s Deal of the Year.
  • Advised independent jet lessor Willis Lease Finance Corp. in expanding its $700 million revolving credit facility to $1 billion.
  • Represented BNP Paribas and a multinational finance company, as lead arrangers/joint bookrunners, in AIM Aviation Finance Limited’s novel $667 million debt issuance — awarded Airfinance Journal’s European Deal of the Year.
  • Represented Turkish Airlines in financing of new Airbus aircraft in first yen-denominated EETCs with Japanese Operating Leases with Call Options (JOLCOs), which was awarded Capital Markets EETC Deal of the Year.
  • Acted for Natixis as liquidity provider and depositary on Latin America’s inaugural issuance of EETCs. As the first-ever EETC from Latin America, it earned Latin America Deal of the Year.
  • Represented Nedbank on the U.S. Ex-Im Bank financing of Boeing aircraft for South African low-cost carrier Comair, which won Africa Deal of the Year by Airfinance Journal.
  • Represented Emirates on an innovative financing of an A380 with a traditional senior loan, pari-passu senior tranche and 40 percent Islamic mezzanine tranche — recognized as the Sale and Leaseback Deal of the Year.
  • Rail/Rolling Stock
    • Represented a variety of U.S., Canadian and European banks on locomotive, railcar and railcar lease portfolio acquisition financings and warehouse facilities.
    • Advised several potential purchasers on large-scale U.S. and European railcar portfolio acquisitions.
    • Served as counsel to the financing parties for specialty railcars used exclusively to transport nuclear fuel rods.
    • Advised the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District on contracting, compliance, financing and development for rail transit and transit-oriented development, including energy service contracts and P3 transactions in California.
  • Shipping, Maritime and Offshore
    • Advised alternative asset managers regarding equity capital and junior debt financing of offshore rigs on time charter to an oil major and the financing of offshore construction vessels.
    • Represented a global banking and financial services company and its subsidiary in Brazil in connection with the financing and refinancing of 21 offshore drill ships for Sete Internaciónal.
    • Represented multilateral institution and a U.S. government agency as senior project finance lenders and equity investor in financing a barge-mounted diesel-fired power plant.
    • Represented the borrower on an unsecured export credit-supported corporate credit facility transaction for an oil rig.
  • Equipment
    • Represented the lessor of automobile manufacturing equipment in a cross-border lease financing.
    • Served as counsel to the financing parties for the lease of heavy duty construction equipment.
    • Advised the lenders in the leveraged lease financing of diesel truck fleets.
    • Served as counsel to the lessee in a cross-border financing of multinational pipeline and pumping stations.

Practice Area Highlights

  • Awarded Global Aviation Law Firm of the Year at the Airline Economics 2020 Aviation 100 Awards.
  • The Legal 500 U.S. ranked Pillsbury for Asset Finance, noting us as a “go-to” choice considered by banks and lessors as “one of the best firms in the aviation business.”
  • Achieved Chambers USA, Chambers Global Aviation and High-Net Worth: Private Aircraft “Tier 1” recognition, and rankings by Chambers Global-Aviation Finance; Chambers UK-Asset Finance; Chambers USA-Aviation Finance; Chambers Asia-Pacific-Aviation Finance.

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  • Airfinance Journal and Airline Economics have awarded dozens of Pillsbury transactions “Deal of the Year” recognition.
  • Assisted clients in financing or refinancing of more than 1,600 commercial and corporate jet aircraft with an aggregate value exceeding $75 billion.

Resources

Inflight Audio: A Pillsbury Podcast

Pillsbury Named Global Aviation Law Firm of the Year

Brochure

Aviation Finance

The Pillsbury Industry Insights Podcast

Factsheet

Export-Import Bank of the U.S. - Return of the Quorum

Factsheet

Letters of Credit

Factsheet

Aircraft Finance Insurance Consortium (AFIC)

Factsheet

Unsecured Lessor Financing Capabilities

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