Steven Catanzariti

Practice Areas

Steven is an asset and structured finance specialist with extensive experience advising clients across the Asia Pacific region on high value strategic transactions.

Steven specialises in complex structured and asset finance transactions, regularly advising leading Australian and international banks and lenders, borrowers, lessees, lessors and arrangers on a range of structured finance and asset based transactions and corporate financing transactions.

This has included:

advising lessees, borrowers, financiers and sponsors in connection with cross-border financings, including acting in numerous export credit agency (including EXIM Bank) supported financings, highly structured debt and structured financing transactions and lease arrangements; and

advising lessees, lessor’s, equity participants and financiers in numerous domestic and cross border lease financings (involving jurisdictions such as Ireland, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and the United States) and operating leases of aircraft, rolling stock, yellow goods and related equipment.

Clients regard Steven as highly commercial, smart and inquisitive with one client recently commenting “Steven is commercial, but is also willing to talk through legal issues. He’s thorough, clear and kept the pressure on to move things forward… he does a fantastic job”.

Steven is highly regarded in the Australian finance market, and is recognised as a Next Generation Lawyer (Banking and Finance – Australia) by Legal500 and is named in the 2021 edition of Best Lawyers (Aviation Law and Equipment Finance Law). Steven has presented at a number of industry events, including Herbert Smith Freehills run lessor and financier sessions, the Airline Economics leasing school and the Asia Pacific Loan Markets Association documentation school.

Background

Steven holds Bachelor degrees in Business and Laws from the University of Technology Sydney, and a Master of Laws from the University of Sydney. He is admitted as a solicitor in New South Wales.

Work Highlights

Advising airlines (including Virgin Australia, Tiger Australia, Scoot, Malaysia Airlines and Philippines Airlines) on their debt financing of more than 30 narrow body aircraft, multiple JOLCO transactions for more than a dozen aircraft, operating and finance leases, numerous lessor and lessee novations and corporate debt transactions.

Advising Virgin Australia on its market leading US144a EETC transaction (AFJ 2013 Deal of the Year), advising on multiple JOLCOs for Australian airlines and Japanese lenders (including the Air Finance Journal 2018 award for “Tax Lease Deal of the Year” and Global Transport Finance 2018 Australian JOLCO of the Year), and numerous transaction restructurings, operating leases, wet leases and ECA and commercial debt structures.

Advising Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited as lessor in the $100 million sale and lease back operating lease facility across nine jurisdictions across Asia Pacific, including Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Advising a range of Australian and offshore financiers and borrowers on various secured and unsecured group financing arrangements across the region

developing an Australian law governed Shari'a compliant property finance platform with a major Australian bank.