GIC to Invest in BBAM Through Acquisition of Significant Minority Interest
05-Sep-2017 GIC, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, today announced it has, through its affiliates, agreed to acquire a c. 30% interest in BBAM, the world's largest manager of investments in leased commercial jet aircraft. The transaction is expected to close by September 30, 2017, subject to certain conditions and approvals.
GIC will acquire its interest in BBAM through partial sales by the company's two existing shareholders, BBAM's management team and the Onex Group. Following the transaction, all three parties will assume minority joint ownership of the company.
The investment follows a commitment by GIC earlier in 2017 to Incline Aviation ("Incline"), the aircraft leasing industry's largest institutional fund, managed by BBAM.
"GIC is among the industry's most sophisticated investors and we welcome its interest in BBAM," commented Steve Zissis, BBAM's Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We've been deliberate in our choice of partner and are excited for this next chapter in our history."
Arjun Khullar, Head of Integrated Strategies Group at GIC, said, "BBAM is a remarkable platform built upon a 30-year joint venture with Nomura Babcock & Brown. It has expanded through its founding and ongoing management of FLY, and Incline. As a long-term investor, we believe it is a unique opportunity to invest in the aircraft leasing sector which has strong growth potential."
"GIC's participation in BBAM is a strong endorsement of the asset management model that BBAM pioneered more than two decades ago and the investment returns realized on assets managed by BBAM over that period," said Tawfiq Popatia, a Managing Director at Onex. "Leased commercial jet aircraft are widely accepted as a bona fide asset class today and much of that can be traced back to the efforts of Steve and his team."
All amounts in U.S. dollars unless otherwise stated