robert wray PLLC served as legal counsel to the Export-Import Bank of the United States (“Ex-Im Bank”) on two transactions that were recognized with Deals of the Year awards. The Ex-Im Bank guaranteed financing of Boeing 787 (Dreamliner) aircraft for Ethiopian Airlines garnered a Deal of the Year 2012 award from Trade Finance Magazine and Africa Deal of the Year from Airfinance Journal. Airfinance Journal also recognized the Ex-Im Bank supported financing of Delta TechOps engine overhaul services for GOL Airlines in Brazil with the South America Deal of the Year award. Both deals involved the funding of the transactions in the capital markets through the issuance of Ex-Im Bank-guaranteed bonds.
The awards distinguish milestone transactions that, according to the Airfinance Journal, “have each pushed the envelope, either by their size, complexity or their success in execution.”
The Ethiopian Airlines Africa Deal of the Year was momentous not only for the African nation’s flag carrier, as it marked the historical delivery of the continent’s first Dreamliner aircraft, but also for Ex-Im Bank, as it was the first Dreamliner to deliver with Ex-Im Bank guaranteed financing.