Aviation company AerFin sets sights on US expansion

AerFin has secured a seven-figureloan from the Development Bank of Wales to help it expand its operations in the US

A Bedwas-based company that specialises in second-hand aeroplane parts and engines has set its sights on expansion across the Atlantic.

AerFin, headquartered on Bedwas House Industrial Estate, has been loaned a seven-figure sum by the Development Bank of Wales to fund its expansion in the US.

The company essentially signs deals with airlines to take retiring planes and engines off their hands, and then sells them on as parts or as complete units. It also leases whole planes and engines to airlines.

One of the makes of planes the company specialises in is the Embraer E-Jet family. Three-quarters of the world’s airlines that operate such planes are in the US, according to the company, so expansion into that market makes sense.

AerFin includes British Airways, Air France, Lufthansa, and Finnair among its existing customers.

Robert James is Chief Executive of AerFin. He said: “The investment by the Development Bank of Wales means that we now have the working capital required to further expand our operations from our base in Caerphilly to the United States where we are well-positioned to capitalise on the recovery of the aviation industry as people start to take to the skies again. “

Ashely Jones, Chris Dhenin and Navid Falatoori from the Development Bank of Wales worked with AerFin to structure the funding.

Navid Falatoori, from the Development Bank of Wales, said: “With a highly skilled workforce of 50 based in Caerphilly, Aerfin is a strong company with an impressive track record of delivering turnover in excess of $100m.

“As the world recovers from the global pandemic, AerFin is well-placed to benefit from airline operators’ need to maintain their current fleet and reduce carbon footprint, therefore having a positive impact on the environment.”

in 2019, AerFin was bought out by Danish equity firm CataCap, in a deal which saw it become the majority shareholder in the company.

The company was founded in Cardiff in 2010 and moved to Bedwas in 2014, with the move part-financed by the Welsh Government.

In 2020, AerFin was named as the fastest growing aerospace and defence company in Europe by the Financial Times’ FT1000 in 2020.

AerFin

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