GIFT City eyes bigger slice of aircraft leasing business

Mumbai: GIFT City is betting on niche financial segments such as aircraft and ship leasing to build a more competitive global financial hub, said Sanjay Kaul, managing director (MD) and group chief executive officer (CEO), of the financial services centre.

Indian airlines have historically structured much of their aircraft leasing and financing through overseas centres, leaving domestic financial centres with a smaller share of the business. GIFT City now wants to capture more of that activity as India’s aviation market expands and airlines build a large aircraft order book.

“Major Indian airlines that operate now have an order book of around 2,000-plus aircraft, which is fully leased. Traditionally, all this leasing happens outside India because India did not have a leasing ecosystem,” Kaul told Mint.

An estimated 80% of India's commercial fleet is financed and leased through entities in Ireland, the Cayman Islands, Singapore, or Tianjin. Ireland alone controls 29% of the global market for aircraft leasing, according to a September 2025 PwC report.

With aircraft leasing regulations now in place in GIFT City and the supporting ecosystem taking shape, GIFT City is looking to bring a larger share of this business onshore, Kaul added.

As of June, 237 aircraft had been leased from GIFT City, according to the International Financial Services Centres Authority’s quarterly bulletin. Only 17 aircraft were leased in December 2023, the latest data showed.

The centre had also facilitated the leasing of 87 engines, 85 auxiliary power units, one aviation training simulation device and two landing gears. There are around 37 aircraft leasing entities operating from GIFT City as of June.

The development of a financing structure that can give banks greater comfort in lending against aircraft is another part of the effort.

Banks were previously hesitant to lend directly to airlines for aircraft purchases because of the risks associated with the business and the specialised nature of aircraft financing, Kaul said.

The regulatory framework, introduced in 2021, now allows a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to own the aircraft and sit between the lender and the airline. Under this structure, the lender’s exposure is tied to the aircraft rather than directly to the airline’s balance sheet.

The broader plan is to make GIFT City a natural base for companies seeking to finance and lease aircraft and ships.

“The logical path for any company planning to lease an aircraft or ship going forward should be: why can’t we do it in GIFT?" Kaul said.

Aircraft leasing is not the only niche segment where GIFT City is gaining traction. The number of ships leased through the centre rose from three in December 2023 to 42 in June 2026, according to IFSCA’s quarterly bulletin. There are around 38 ship lessors in the centre.

Semiconductor opportunity

Aviation and ship leasing are just one part of the expansion strategy. Kaul also said GIFT City is in discussions with semiconductor companies to explore whether they could establish back-office operations in the financial centre, as Gujarat develops a semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem.

Tata Electronics, in partnership with PSMC, Taiwan, is building a state-of-the-art, AI-enabled 300mm (12-inch) fabrication facility in Dholera, Gujarat. Micron opened a semiconductor assembly and test facility in Sanand.

Crystal Matrix Ltd will also set up an integrated facility for compound semiconductor fabrication in Dholera, while Suchi Semicon Pvt. Ltd is establishing an outsourced semiconductor assembly and test facility in Surat.

“GIFT City has now developed world-class business zones which are attracting global capability centres,” said Rajeev Nair, partner at Rajani Associates. “This complements the push of the Gujarat government towards manufacturing and packaging centres elsewhere in Gujarat. With this the GIFT City has positioned itself as a diversified destination for business much beyond the BFSI and IT sectors.”