Apollo Global Management and Athene Holding have acquired an aviation lending business from GE Capital.
In a joint statement, the companies said Apollo will buy PK AirFinance’s aircraft lending platform and Athene will acquire PK AirFinance’s existing portfolio of loans from GE Capital’s Aviation Services (GECAS) unit for an undisclosed amount.
PK AirFinance is a provider and arranger of loans secured by commercial aircraft, aircraft engines, and helicopters. The company serves airlines, aircraft traders, lessors, investors, financial institutions and manufacturers worldwide.
Alec Burger, GE Capital president and CEO, said: “This sale is aligned to GE Capital’s overall strategy to become smaller and simpler, and our commitment to reduce our assets by $10bn (€9bn) in 2019 is now more than halfway complete.
“We continue to focus on shrinking GE Capital’s balance sheet, achieving a debt-to-equity ratio of less than 4x by 2020, and supporting GE Industrial growth through our remaining GECAS, Energy Financial Services, and Industrial Finance businesses.”
Jim Belardi, CEO of Athene, said: “This transaction provides us with a unique opportunity to acquire a large, diversified portfolio of high-quality loans with attractive risk-adjusted returns.
“In addition, this deal is another great example of the unique benefits of our strategic relationship with Apollo and its commitment to building direct origination platforms in support of the continued growth of our business.”
James Zelter, co-president of Apollo, said: “This transaction also demonstrates our ongoing commitment to meet the investment needs of Athene and our clients, and is consistent with our objective to continue to expand Apollo’s capabilities to directly originate high-quality assets.”
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