By Business & Finance 
Peter Barrett, CEO of SMBC Aviation Capital, is our Business Person of the Month for October 2025, in association with KPMG. SMBC Aviation Capital provides aircraft leases, with a focus on young commercial jet aircraft.
By Héloïse Chaudot
Peter Barrett
Peter Barrett, SMBC Aviation Capital’s CEO since 2004, has over 30 years of experience in aircraft leasing and finance.
Barrett started his career managing the phones at Guinness Peat Aviation (GPA).
Mr Barrett’s journey as an aircraft trader is quite uncommon. As he was answering the phone at GPA, a Danish buyer of aircraft was on the line.
Barrett, seeing an opportunity, followed up with the caller, and closed his first deal. Barrett said: “It seemed unlikely, but it ended up being a trade.”
During his tenure at GPA, Barrett started by flying all around the world and ended up closing two deals in South Korea, where he stayed for three weeks.
In 2004, he was appointed as CEO of the then-named RBS Aviation Capital. Barrett commented: “When I started with GPA – exactly 30 years ago – it was 10% of the world’s fleet that was leased,” says Barrett. “It was a niche product – there just weren’t that many operating lease companies.”
Thirty years after his career began, Barrett led the now-renamed SMBC Aviation Capital to secure long-term leases worth US$4 billion, achieving 100% lease placement across its portfolio through late 2027. SMBC Aviation Capital completed more than 196 aircraft transactions, covering purchases, sales, and leases across both its delivered and committed fleets.
SMBC Aviation Capital
Originally called RBS Aviation, the company was renamed SMBC Aviation Capital when it was acquired by Japanese firm Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) in 2012.
Upon the acquisition, Barrett said: “The sale of our business by our shareholders was a very difficult time … There was a lot of uncertainty. Getting the ship home safely was a real sense of accomplishment.”
In March, it was reported that SMBC Aviation Capital’s profits reached $1.2 billion (€1.06 billion). Its main business – buying, leasing, and selling aircraft to global airlines – grew pretax profits to a record $563 million from March 2024 to March 2025.
SMBC Aviation Capital completed more than 196 aircraft transactions in FY24, covering purchases, sales, and leases across both its delivered and committed fleets.
Lawsuit settlements against insurers over aircraft loss as a consequence of the Ukrainian-Russian war came to $654 million, further boosting the company’s headline profit.
The company reported the termination of its lease with Russian Airlines following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, resulting in the loss of 34 aircraft.
At the end of March this year, the company reported that its fleet consisted of 1001 aircraft.
Business Person of the Month
The Business Person of the Month Award, in association with KPMG, recognises outstanding leaders in Irish business. It especially acknowledges those who have made significant contributions to the business community of Ireland.
Recipients of the award are automatically put forward as candidates for the prestigious Business Person of the Year Award at the annual Business & Finance Awards. The Business & Finance Awards will take place on Thursday, 11 December 2025, at The Convention Centre, Dublin. For any inquiries, please contact priyanka.kotian@businessandfinance.com
Business & Finance, Business Person of the Month
Business & Finance, in association with KPMG, recognises excellence in business through the ‘Business Person of the Month’ award. This award seeks to recognise noteworthy achievements in business leadership, and, particularly, those that make a telling contribution to the wider business community in Ireland.
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