Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank (SuMi Trust), and Novus Aviation Capital have announced the launch of the US$200 million Ortus Aircraft Leasing Fund (Ortus).
Novus is co-sponsor in Ortus 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 sale and leaseback equity investments.
Ortus is Latin for ‘rising’ and intends to represent the emergence of Japan’s financial institutions, such as SuMi TRUST. 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.”
Novus currently co-owns and manages aircraft-related projects worth about US$3 billion.