Commercial Aircraft Finance Market Outlook 2026

A more robust OEM aircraft delivery stream year over-year brought a healthier pool of financing opportunities to the markets, but yields for many transactions remained stubbornly low through the course of 2025. That tight pricing has continued into 2026.

Diversity of funding sources was a hallmark of 2025, and this product optionality prevented any single capital source from unduly dominating the financing marketplace. Very strong offerings from the private sector in the North American markets, for example, continued to temper public asset‑backed issuances by U.S. airlines. We have also observed a number of private financing platforms continue to develop their product offerings, often blurring the lines between credit and asset financiers. This financing kaleidoscope was further reinforced by alternative lenders deploying different pockets of capital through their associated vehicles, enabling airlines to create bespoke solutions for their delivery financing requirements. Regional capital, notably from the Middle East, is engaging both within its corridors and on the international stage. It appears that new financings will be eagerly competed for through 2026.

As with all big-ticket financings there will be natural exposure limits reached per institution and consequently a need to actively manage portfolios. Distribution and syndication activity continues to increase as new aircraft deliveries (notably widebodies) pick up year over year and thoughtful horizon planning around financial product selection will be instrumental in securing ongoing capital availability for airlines.

We expect funding requirements continuing to grow through the decade (and beyond), which reflects the strong OEM order books and expectations of increased production levels. The outlook for new financing volumes in this period (2026–2030) is forecast to be materially higher than previously seen and will require all primary financial products to be operating satisfactorily to meet new delivery volumes.

Boeing deliveries continued to be weighted towards North American airlines, with a 20%+ year-over-year increase in that region. Accompanying that growth is a more diversified pool of financiers offering a broader product mix, although cash remains the predominant source of funding, reflecting broadly sound airline fundamentals.

Europe’s deliveries did not increase at the same pace as the U.S., but saw a good mix of financial solutions, although cash continues to be a dominant funding source in view of customer delivery concentration.

Asia Pacific and India deliveries increased by just over 10% compared with 2024, with further product offerings being visible in the funding mix. Heavily growth-focused, leasing solutions have proven to be an important funding source for airlines.

The Middle East saw the most significant annual growth in deliveries and accompanying that was a change in the funding landscape, with wider engagement across key financial products. Local bank funding remained highly competitive.

The Chinese market was very similar to 2024, with some marginal changes in product funding mix within three key pillars supporting aircraft delivery financing.

The Latin American and African markets saw a more limited range of options, although leasing solutions featured once again in 2025 on the African continent.

The breadth of bank funding is a positive signal from 2025 and we envisage that as our deliveries extend to additional customers, more banks will engage in aircraft financing opportunities. Our CAFMO analysis and report is aligned to new delivery financing and we recognize that there are many more institutions involved in secondary markets for new and used aircraft financing that we have not captured here. Our teams are however connected globally to the wider banking network and continue to ensure that we offer appropriate insights and data to facilitate availability of capital to our customer base.

Global interest in sale-leaseback products as airlines seek to reduce capital-expenditure burden and mitigate residual-value risks and benefit from 100% loan-to-value (LTV) coverage provided by SLB. Narrow-body aircraft dominate in SLB share, with Asia Pacific and India remaining heavily reliant on the SLB product. Competitive pricing in the SLB market continues to attract a large number of North American deliveries.

In 2025, Export Credit Agencies (ECAs) continued to play a key role in providing liquidity to the financing of Boeing deliveries, with a marginal year-over-year increase in funded dollars. This was primarily driven by increased widebody support, where we have seen a marked uplift in ECA participation. As aircraft production rates continue to increase and deliveries extend to a wider customer base, we expect export credit agencies to continue to play a crucial role in providing airlines access to necessary capital pools from order to delivery.

We welcome and recognize the potential value of harmonized aircraft financing protocols that full adoption and implementation of, and compliance with, the Cape Town Convention would bring. Financiers appreciate a more predictable application of the rule of law when assessing transaction risk, which feeds into their price models. Cape Town signatories benefit from access to a broader pool of capital providers with consequential improvements in the cost of financing, notably where ECA structures are deployed. Furthermore, the adoption and ratification of the Cape Town Convention may offer access to certain international markets with deeper pools of liquidity.  

We remain supportive of the AWG initiatives to broaden full adoption of, and compliance with, the Cape Town Convention and are encouraged by recent progress in a number of countries that value the broad benefits of its implementation. Our teams remain active globally in supporting initiatives that create level playing fields in aircraft financing.