Bahrain-based Ibdar Bank has closed a US$100 million deal with Ethiopian Airlines for the lease of four Bombardier Q400 NextGen aircraft. This is the first sharia-compliant transaction in Africa's aviation sector, according to the bank.
Under the 12-year deal, Ibdar will lease aircraft to Ethiopian with an option for an additional four planes. The deal was financed with $22 million of equity, and $78 million secured through a funding agreement with Export Development Canada.
This is Ibdar Bank's second Islamic aircraft leasing transaction – the first being a six-year lease of a 777-200ER in 2011 for Emirates. Ibdar also participated in a small syndicated deal for Bahrain's Gulf Air in 2009.