Johannesburg, South Africa – 23 July 2013: Standard Chartered through its award winning Aviation Finance team, Pembroke, today announced a 12-year sale and leaseback agreement with South Africa’s national carrier, South African Airways (SAA), for 10 Airbus A320-200 aircraft.

The aircraft will be delivered over the next two years, with the first two deliveries taking place in July this year (2013).

This is the first aviation finance deal in South Africa by Standard Chartered and is further demonstration of the Bank’s commitment to South Africa and its strategy of leveraging its global team and world class innovative financial products to support the international expansion of South African corporates and institutions.

“We are delighted to be able to support SAA in this important transaction and to leverage our investment banking expertise to finance these aircraft, as well as to participate in this new sale and leaseback agreement,” said Daniel Hanna, Co-Head of Wholesale Banking, Southern Africa. “This year we celebrate the 150th anniversary of our first business in South Africa and this deal is further testament to our long term commitment to the country and supporting South African clients. We look forward to using our full product suite to support SAA’s expansion and transformation.”

“We are truly grateful that Standard Chartered has agreed to be the financiers for the first 10 aircraft in our fleet renewal.. The deal will significantly enhance SAA’s domestic and regional growth strategy to become the carrier of choice in Africa. The Airbus A320-200 aircraft are central to SAA’s plans to provide an efficient and comprehensive regional route network,” said SAA CEO, Monwabisi Kalawe.

The airline’s newly appointed CEO added that the acquisition of the aircraft fits into SAA’s Long Term Turnaround Strategy. “Our Long Term Turnaround Strategy has identified some big-ticket items responsible for our high operating costs. These include high fuel costs as well as the use of fuel-inefficient aircraft. This deal provides the necessary solution by securing a new generation, fuel-efficient fleet for us,” explained Kalawe.

Kieran Corr, the Chief Executive Officer for Pembroke and Global Head of Aviation Finance for Standard Chartered, said: “We have long-standing relationships with our clients and meeting their needs is our top priority. We are thrilled to support Africa’s largest carrier, SAA, as it expands its fleet across one of the world’s fastest growing regions. This transaction showcases the capabilities of Standard Chartered to provide tailored solutions to African carriers as they develop their fleets to meet the growing air traffic demand in Africa. This deal should contribute to intra-African trade, which was also an attractive feature of the underlying transaction.”

Pembroke is wholly owned by Standard Chartered PLC and owns and manages a diverse portfolio of more than 90 aircraft.

This deal builds on the significant investment Standard Chartered has made in South Africa and across the continent. In the last two months, Standard Chartered announced its intention to acquire the South African custody and trustee business of Absa Bank and the opening of two new wholesale banking corporate offices in Cape Town and Durban.

Standard Chartered is the leading international bank across Africa. In 2012, South Africa was among 10 African markets that delivered double-digit income growth, up 28%. Over the past five years, Standard Chartered’s Africa business has delivered average annual growth of 15%. In 2012, the region generated income of USD1,6-billion, up 15%, with the Wholesale bank generating USD1,1-billion, up 16%.