Emirates secures 12-year Shariah financing for two A350-900s

By Priya Raman

Emirates secured 12-year Shariah-compliant (meeting Islamic-law requirements) financing on November 9, 2026, for purchases of two new Airbus A350-900 widebodies in 2026. Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) and France-based Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB) completed the French lease transaction supporting those purchases.

The completed deal changes Emirates’ funding position, not the aircraft’s delivery or service status. The announcement identified neither A350-900 as delivered or in service and gave no delivery date, financing amount, lease rate or fee schedule.

How is the financing structured?

The structure combines two banking frameworks that Emirates says are typically arranged separately. It aligns features of a French lease (a lease-based financing structure) with Shariah principles, according to Emirates.

DIB said the process reconciled applicable French lease considerations with Shariah standards. Emirates said the model “establishes a repeatable blueprint for future international aviation financings seeking to harmonize these two distinct frameworks while meeting Islamic law requirements.” The airline added that the transaction “demonstrates how airlines can access alternative, diversified pools of capital.”

What does this change for Emirates?

It broadens the airline’s sources of long-term capital and provides a structure for combining two legal and religious requirements in one cross-border aircraft purchase. That may reduce reliance on any single financing format, although the announcement disclosed no pricing from which to measure savings or added cost.

Emirates already uses a highly diversified and sophisticated long-term financing strategy for its multi-aircraft order book (the list of planned aircraft purchases). Its funding mix includes conventional commercial debt and Shariah-compliant structures, making this transaction an extension of an existing approach rather than a new financing category.

For Emirates’ fleet and network plans, the immediate change is funding availability, not usable capacity. Two A350-900s represent potential fleet additions, but the announcement specified neither routes nor entry-into-service dates. It also provided no Airbus backlog or delivery data against which to test the 2026 purchase timetable.

The financing should therefore be treated as completed funding for two purchases, not as confirmation of usable capacity. No manufacturer performance claim, Airbus delivery schedule or service-entry evidence accompanied the transaction, leaving passenger and network effects unquantified.

For banks, lessors and airlines, the model offers a potential template for future cross-border aviation financings requiring both conventional lease documentation and Islamic-law compliance. The announcement named no lessor, maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) provider or aviation regulator. It therefore does not establish a broader operating or certification role for those parties.

The structure’s repeatability will depend on reconciling each future lease with Shariah standards, rather than simply copying a form. Emirates provided no transaction timeline, full participant list or capital-provider response data, so the announcement offers little basis for judging how widely the model can scale.

Derek Blaney, Acting Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Emirates Group, said: “Our strong financial performance and proven track record give us access to innovative solutions like this one, and we are pleased to have worked with both partners on a structure that sets a precedent for future aircraft financing.”

Naveed Ali, Chief of Corporate Banking at DIB, said the “solution” will support Emirates’ “long-term financing requirements while demonstrating how Islamic finance can be applied to complex, cross-border aviation transactions.”

Jean Chédeville, Head of Transportation Finance at Natixis CIB, said: “This transaction demonstrates our ability to develop tailored financing solutions and bring high added value to our clients. We are thrilled to support Emirates with another tailored aircraft delivery funding solution and very pleased to partner with Dubai Islamic Bank on such a unique and innovative project.”

The financing is complete; aircraft delivery and service entry are not confirmed. If other international aviation deals adopt the same framework, the transaction will have served its stated purpose as a repeatable blueprint for combining French lease features with Shariah requirements.