Key Equipment Finance: Closing deals and looking for more

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Key Equipment Finance has offered aircraft finance for over 20 years and is still committed to supporting its customers - particularly corporate clients. Best known in the northern US, Key Corp is one of the largest US bank based financial services companies with assets of almost $90 billion. Key Equipment Finance, the fully owned subsidiary, is one of the largest asset financiers.

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Key Equipment Finance has offered aircraft finance for over 20 years and is still committed to supporting its customers – particularly corporate clients. Best known in the northern US, Key Corp is one of the largest US bank based financial services companies with assets of almost $90 billion. Key Equipment Finance, the fully owned subsidiary, is one of the largest asset financiers.

Peter Bullen, senior vice president and national sales manager, at Key Equipment Finance, says Key is particularly keen to lets its customers know that they can help them with aircraft. “We like the corporate jet market and have invested in building a portfolio.”

In the last 18 months Key Equipment Finance has hired two aircraft specialists who work different sides of the US. Patti Ann Sullivan re-joined the company in 2010 having left the company in 1991. After leaving Key Equipment Finance she worked in aircraft finance for Daimler Chrysler Capital Services, Textron Financial Corporation and Aviation Resource Group International.

Sullivan is responsible for the eastern US, an important market for Key. “I am really enjoying being back where I started my aircraft finance career,” says Sullivan. “Key Equipment Finance is very client focused and it is great closing deals.” Sullivan closed a $30 million loan for a customer the week before the NBAA Convention.

Joe Di Lallo, who joined in October, runs the west coast from Cleveland. He joined the company after running GetJets, an aircraft finance broker for two years. Before GetJets, he worked in JPMorgan Chase’s aircraft finance team.

“It is great to be back as a lender and I was able to bring several GetJets clients who needed finance with me,” says Di Lallo. “It is very positive being here knowing that Key really wants to build a platform.”

Although Key Equipment Finance focuses on larger aircraft – preferring transactions above $5 million – Bullen says the company will consider smaller deals. “If bank clients want to finance smaller aircraft, we will. We do not have fixed rules and our message is that we are here to work with clients to finance the equipment they want.”

There is no upper limit on deals. Key Equipment Finance is very active in the syndication market, selling loans and leases to funds, private equity companies, insurers and other banks and it knows it can sell on debt if internal risk limits are hit – provided that clients agree to this.

“We are out in the market selling equipment loans all of the time,” says James Mestnik, vice president, capital markets group and syndications manager. “We are very comfortable with aircraft loans and can find buyers.”

Bullen, who is responsible for other asset finance markets at Key Equipment Finance, says he particularly likes building links with other divisions of Key and although his focus is on working with corporate customers he is also keen for the aircraft finance team to support private bank clients.

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