Credit Suisse has launched an aviation liquidity subsidiary that aims to help actors in the aviation and air transport industry manage short-term transactions involving leased aircraft.
The company, to be called SCALE Aviation, will be headquartered in Dublin, the Swiss bank said on 16 January.
“SCALE will be an aviation conduit and liquidity provider for investors, aircraft lessors, airlines, and aviation manufacturers, facilitating aviation asset acquisitions, dispositions, capital markets financings, and investments,” Credit Suisse says. “Targeting short-term warehousing of aviation assets, SCALE will assist aviation industry clients with fleet transitions, financing, and ease of execution to provide greater execution certainty around portfolio trading activities.”
While the bank has previously financed lessors and other clients in buying and selling aircraft, this is the first time it has set up a dedicated business to support buyers and sellers in a holistic way as they source, manage, trade and complete transactions, a source familiar with the matter says.
The subsidiary will only deal in new or used commercial aircraft, not private jets, and provide its services only on aircraft with a lease attached, rather than speculative orders. SCALE expects to make its first transaction shortly.
Overall volumes could be into the billions of dollars, the source says, also adding that a typical transaction could be “in the range of 4-6 months rather than 4-6 years”.
Credit Suisse says SCALE will be a “complementary extension of our existing Global Markets Securitized Products’ industry leading trading, distribution, financing, and risk management platform”.
“SCALE is not an aviation lessor and will not be building a long term investment portfolio of aircraft,” the statement says.
