Waypoint Leasing Limited, an Ireland-based independent global helicopter leasing company, has been recognized by the sixth China Air Finance Development (DFTP) Summit as the recipient of its Structured Innovation Award.
The award comes as commendation for Waypoint’s establishment of a leasing platform in Tianjin Free-Trade Zone in China.
Philip Stransky, vice president of sales and relationship management, Asia Pacific, accepted the award on behalf of Waypoint at the Summit, which took place Sept. 27 to 29 in Tianjin.
Commenting on the recognition, Stransky said, “It is a great honor for us to accept this award. We pay sincere thanks to the team at Tianjin Free-Trade Zone for their helpful advice and assistance in establishing a platform that will help develop helicopter leasing as part of the huge potential for growth in China.”
Clark McGinn, senior vice president of sales and relationship management added, “We are delighted that the China Air Finance Development Summit recognized our ability to push the pre-established structural boundaries and be the first foreign helicopter leasing company to establish an SPV in China. Our diligence in facilitating this development is yet another example of the way we at Waypoint differentiate ourselves, and how we strive to attain marketplace advantages that offer value to our clients.”
A spokesman for the International Shipping and Finance Promotion Center of the Tianjin Free-Trade Port Zone said, “We are glad to have Waypoint Leasing as the winner for the [Structured] Innovation Award of the year. The Skyway deal is the very first case that a foreign lessor has leased a helicopter to a domestic China operator through an SPV in a lease-in and lease-out structure. The great significance of the deal lies in that it has enabled the Chinese operator to introduce helicopter through operating lease, with a lower tax cost and custom tax deposit.”
The China Air Finance Development Summit debuted in 2012 to keep pace with the rapid development of the China air finance industry.
This year, emphasis was on the Free-Trade Zone of Tianjin, a strategic layout aimed at making Tianjin an industrial cluster for aircraft leasing and aviation finance for China and the world. Summit focal points included the change of policies; new requirements of supervision and capital management; and trends in the market related to aircraft leasing and its related industries.
Since its inception in 2013, Waypoint has been active in supporting oil and gas, utility, firefighting and other industrial-focused helicopter operators.
Waypoint’s portfolio includes more than 150 aircraft for 32 customers in 30 countries with total assets in excess of US$1.6 billion. Additionally, Waypoint has firm and option orders with aircraft manufacturers for more than 90 helicopters valued at more than US$1.2 billion, to be delivered over the next five years.