Shariah Meets French Lease: Inside Emirates’ Landmark Aviation Deal

Deniz Billion: The Middle East is currently one of the most dynamic aviation finance markets in the world. While many other regions have reached maturity, this region is still on a strong growth phase. Airlines have massive order books for the coming decade to support traffic growth and modernize their fleets with more fuel-efficient, next-generation aircraft.The overall number of commercial aircraft is expected to double to reach 42,000 units by 2045.

This momentum is also being driven by ambitious government initiatives, with aviation playing a strategic role in economic diversification strategies. Consequently, we are seeing significant investment across the entire ecosystem, from new airports and airport expansion to newly established airlines and aircraft leasing companies.

Beyond macroeconomic and geopolitical considerations, confidence in the resilience and performance of the global aviation sector is growing. Despite operating in a cyclical industry, airlines in the Middle East have proven incredibly resilient, successfully navigating major crises such as COVID-19 by managing their capacity and balance sheets with agility.

To fund their substantial capital expenditure requirements, airlines are strategically exploring different funding sources: innovative structures helping to tap into new sources of liquidity. Such diversification exercise includes developing new conduits that capture regional liquidity in a more structured fashion.

Deniz Billion: Our goal was to provide Emirates with an innovative, high-value product that bridges the requirements of Islamic finance with the French lease structure - a product mastered by French banks.

The financing directly supports Emirates’ ongoing fleet expansion strategy while supporting the airline in diversification of its funding sources.

Deniz Billion: This is a 12-year, Shariah-compliant French Lease supporting Emirates’ acquisition of two new Airbus A350-900 aircraft, delivered in Q2 and Q3 2026. It is a true market first, with both the lease and the loan structured in a Shariah-compliant way.

The innovation lies in harmonizing two highly complex frameworks that are normally structured separately. This required deep, meticulous work over almost a year.

Natixis CIB acted as lease arranger, investor and Islamic financier, while Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) acted as co-Islamic financier.

Deniz Billion: First and foremost, sheer determination and close relationship management. As a relationship bank for Emirates, we wanted to support the airline’s strong desire to diversify its funding with a highly creative solution. Emirates was a fantastic partner, always keen to pioneer new products in the market.

We were also very pleased to partner with Dubai Islamic Bank and combine our complementary strengths to make this product unique.

Internally, this success is the result of seamless cooperation between our Aviation Finance team and our Optimized Finance experts.

Deniz Billion: Absolutely. Now that we have established the blueprint, we can replicate this structure for other carriers in the region.

By blending optimized aviation leasing with Islamic finance, this transaction demonstrates how airlines can access alternative, diversified pools of capital and reduces their cost of funding. It establishes a repeatable model for future international aviation financings seeking to harmonize distinct frameworks.