Welsh aviation firm AerFin acquired by Japanese firm in £475m deal

Under the new ownership of Orix Aviation the Newport headquartered firm is looking to expand further

Newport headquartered aviation venture AerFin has been acquired by a Japanese firm in a £475m deal as it eyes further expansion.

AerFin, a leading aftermarket specialist that buys, sells, leases and repairs aircraft, engines and parts, has been bought by Orix Aviation. The deal was announced earlier this year subject to regulatory approval.

AerFin is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Orix Aviation, which is part of New York and Tokyo listed multinational Orix Group.

The acquisition provides an exit for AerFin’s private equity backers and majority owner CataCap. Of AerFin’s global workforce of more than 230 around half are based in Newport, which it remains committed to.

It also has operations in Miami, Singapore and Dublin. Last year it completed a relocation from Bedwas to a new larger HQ and maintenance facilities at Indurent Park in Newport.

Simon Goodson, chief executive of AerFin, said: “This marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for AerFin. Joining Orix Aviation gives us the long-term backing, global reach and shared ambition to accelerate our growt.

” I am immensely proud of our people and everything they have achieved to bring us to this point. Together with Orix Aviation, we are well placed to build a stronger, more capable business and create new opportunities across the aviation aftermarket.”

James Meyler, chief executive of Orix Aviation, said: “We are delighted to welcome AerFin to Orix Aviation and the wider Orix Group following the completion of the acquisition. This is an important milestone for our business, bringing together complementary capabilities across the aircraft lifecycle and strengthening the services we can provide to our customers globally.

“AerFin has built an impressive platform, supported by an experienced team, deep technical expertise, and a strong global customer network. We look forward to building on these foundations together and creating long-term value for our customers, industry partners and investors, while supporting a more sustainable aviation industry through the reuse and optimisation of aircraft assets.

In 2025 AerFin’s revenues climbed 25% to around £276m with Ebitda up 33% to more than £52m.

Orix Aviation was advised by Goldman Sachs International as sole financial advisor, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher as legal counsel, EY as financial due diligence advisor and PwC as tax due diligence advisor.

AerFin was advised by Rothschild & Co as sole financial advisor, Baker McKenzie as legal counsel, KPMG as financial and tax due diligence advisor and BCG as commercial due diligence advisor. Osborne Clarke and Liberty Corporate Finance acted respectively as legal counsel and financial advisors to the management team.