Vista Global secures $288m of Pass Through Certs with Jefferies

Vista Global has secured $287.5m of fixed-income securities in the form of Pass Through Certificates (PTCs) with investment banking company Jefferies Group acting as placement agent.

The two PTCs, given to an investor against mortgage-backed securities, were secured by a portion of Vista’s fleet. One PTC, a Class A tranche, comprised $250.5m, while the Class B tranche was worth $37m. They will mature in 2030 and 2029 respectively.

This marks the company’s third Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates (EETC) transaction since 2020.

The company said the proceeds are being used to refinance a large portion of legacy Jet Edge debt, which Vista agreed to buy in March. They will also fund further fleet expansion including four Challengers and one Global 7500.

Jefferies said the transaction “further diversifies Vista’s capital structure and materially reduces the average cost of debt for the business”.

Through its deal to buy Jet Edge, the company added 100 of Jet Edge’s aircraft to its fleet, bringing its total fleet up to more than 350 compared with about 200 in 2021. Last month, Thomas Flohr, founder and chairman, Vista said the acquisition of Jet Edge would allow Vista clients to “have access to a larger team of experts and a greater range of aircraft and availability”.

In the first half of 2022, Vista reported double digit growth having sold 27% more programme hours in the first half of the year compared to the full pre-pandemic year 2019.

Flohr previously told Corporate Jet Investor exclusively that he is “continuing to look at other opportunities for acquisitions”.