About Us
St Julian’s Finance is an independent European asset-backed leasing provider, operating across maritime and aviation. From our base in Malta, we structure tailored leasing solutions for yachts and aircraft, enabling clients to approach ownership with clarity, flexibility, and long-term perspective. Our approach combines financial expertise with a deep understanding of high-value assets, ensuring each solution is both efficient and aligned with the client’s wider objectives. From sea to sky, ownership starts with the right structure.
INDUSTRY EXPERTS
Meet The Team
George Stiglingh
Head of Business Development
George Stiglingh joined our team in 2023, bringing a background in audit, insurance, and credit lending, with experience at Africa's largest insurer and Barclays Bank. A qualified chartered accountant, George moved to Malta during COVID to embrace the maritime culture. He expertly guides clients through the yacht leasing process, ensuring clarity on contracts and VAT impacts, and aligning our products to meet their needs.
Willem Steenkamer
CEO & Board Member
Willem has held several positions as General Manager, Finance Director and Head of Leasing in a number of well-established banks. As the General Manager, Willem was responsible for transforming a company’s vision into successful business strategies and execution. He delivered successful business results consistently through quality and operational excellence.
Ylenia Keegan
CFO, Board Secretary & Board member
Ylenia has worked within the audit arm of Pricewaterhouse Coopers in the Channel Islands, the UK, Malta and Rome. At an investment bank Morgan Stanley in the UK she supported the Credit Flow and Commodities trading desk before returning to join St Julian’s Advisory Ltd in November 2018, and St Julian's Maritime Finance Ltd in 2019. She recently obtained a certification as a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) from the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS).
Tatyana Barbara
Head of Accounts
Tatyana’s professional background is very vast and versatile. Initially, Tatyana graduated as a lawyer in Moscow, Russia and spent a number of years working as an advocate specialising in commercial and litigation law. After reallocating to Malta, Tatyana spent several years working with legal firms and CSPs. She also obtained ACCA qualification and, prior to joining St Julian’s Maritime Finance, worked for 6 years within one of the leading audit firms in the audit and assurance department. Tatyana holds CPA warrant as well as Practising Certificate in Auditing.
Snezana Andelkovic
Office Assistant
Snezana has experience working in small, medium and large enterprises in Serbia as an independent accountant for 15 years. Next to the day-to-day office management activities, she also assists the finance team in tax administration duties.
Eleonora Sessa
Operations & Fleet Manager
With a Master’s degree in International Cooperation, Eleonora brings a diverse professional background, including experience as a translator and educator. She has confidently transitioned into the field of Yacht Administration and Marketing, where she leverages her strong communication and organizational skills to support the team’s administrative and marketing operations. Driven by curiosity and a commitment to excellence, Eleonora is fully embracing the yachting industry and consistently delivers high-quality support across all aspects of her role.
Rogier Van Esveld
Business Development & Operations
For the past decade, Rogier has worked at the intersection of accounting, logistics, and global trade, managing financial operations for a company with a worldwide footprint. This role provided hands-on experience in navigating the challenges of international markets, cross-border transactions, and supply chain dynamics, all while maintaining a strong foundation in financial accuracy and compliance. Today at St. Julian’s Maritime Finance, he applies that global perspective to support clients in structuring tailored financial solutions and support them in their operational needs.
Philbert Sammut
Senior Accountant
Philbert Sammut is a Senior Accountant at St. Julian’s Maritime Finance, with over 10 years of experience in the banking, insurance, and financial services sectors. He holds an Advanced Diploma in Accounting and Business. At St. Julian’s, he plays a key role in maintaining strong financial controls and supporting strategic accounting initiatives of the company.
Christopher Micallef
Senior Accountant
Christopehr joined St Julian’s Maritime Finance in 2025 and his career spans across diverse industries, including the Financial Services, Manufacturing and Recruitment for the iGaming sector. With over 25 years of experience, Chris helped organizations scale by aligning talent strategies with business goals and streamlining financial and operational processes. Chris brings a deep understanding of the unique challenges in each field, making him adaptable and resourceful in driving business success. He is passionate about driving growth through people-focused solutions and bring a strong cross-industry perspective to every role he takes on.
Ruta Virbalyte
Credit & Risk Officer
Rūta Virbalytė brings to the company a wealth of high-level credit risk expertise shaped by over a decade in decision-making roles at one of the Baltics' leading financial institutions — SEB Bank. As a long-standing member and chair of several credit committees, she has been at the heart of complex credit approvals for both SME and corporate clients, consistently balancing risk mitigation with business growth. Her track record includes the development and optimization of risk rating tools, implementation of ECB-defined default frameworks, and hands-on training of cross-functional teams. With deep knowledge of credit policy, collateral structuring, and real-time risk governance, Rūta has added critical strength to the company’s credit culture, internal procedures, and portfolio oversight.
Board of Directors
Ron Huggett
Non-Executive Member
Ron Huggett is a highly skilled and accomplished banking professional with over forty years of banking experience with particular skills in treasury management, capital and senior funding, investor relations and investment management. Ron was a member of the Group Executive with The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in the UK and retired in 2009 as Deputy Group Treasurer. In March 2010 he was invited back to be a Treasury Consultant to RBS until the end of 2011. Following this, Ron was asked to be a non-executive director and then Chairman of the Board of Directors of FCM Bank in Malta where he assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer of the bank until February 2018.
Tony Mahoney
Chairman
Tony Mahoney, Managing Director at St Julian’s Advisory. Whilst at HSBC for 27 years, Tony was Group General Manager and Deputy CEO of Continental Europe managing 21 countries before joining Oman’s 2nd largest bank, BankDhofar as its CEO. He currently chairs 3 of Malta’s largest and most successful companies and has been instrumental in the setup of St Julian's Maritime Finance Ltd.
Luke Calleja
Non-Executive Member
Luke Calleja is a highly skilled finance professional with over 17 years of financial leadership within high-growth challenger banks and fintech startups, driving value through growth and profitability. He has extensive experience in capital planning and management as well as compliance and effective risk oversight. He has a wealth of knowledge with respect to strategic financial management including financial services regulation and accounting standards, credit appraisals, treasury management and retail deposit management.
Stefano Mallia
Non-Executive Member
Stefano Mallia is a partner at EMCS Ltd as is responsible for Business and EU advisory services. He has been involved in several high-profile assignments within the European Parliament and Commission for both the private and public sector. Stefano has also been a key author of various important documents concerning Structural Funds in Malta and has been engaged in evaluations of various EU funded projects and programmes. Stefano is a member of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) where he is Vice-President of the Employers Group. He has been actively involved as Rapporteur in the drawing up of several key Opinions on issues such as Brexit, Cohesion Policy, On-Line Gaming, the Common Strategic Framework, Immigration in the Mediterranean, and the drawing up of a Macro-Regional Strategy for the Mediterranean area.
Angela Attard Fenech
Non-Executive Member
Angela Attard Fenech is a business advisor by profession. She is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA) and earned an MBA from the University of Hull. She is a visiting lecturer at the University of Malta. She has provided business advisory services, to a range of businesses, from financial services to hospitality. Angela has worked on developing and supporting business strategies for the long and medium term. This included overseeing financial and operational performance of entities, reviewing industry KPI’s and benchmarks. She has held roles in Internal Audit, where she conducted and developed quality management and quality assurance standards for private entities. Angela’s has held responsibilities also in strategic procurement where she sought to find valuable solutions to significantly improve the profit performance of companies, by reducing costs on key expense categories.
Ian Mizzi
Non-Executive Member
Director on the Board of Mizzi Organisation and Managing Director at Industrial Motors. He has experience in a variety of sector having held posts in sectors such as , the Beverage sector, automotive, IT, finance and lubricants. He also held the post of Maltese Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco from 2008 until 2013. He is currently also the President of the Maltese- Chinese chamber of Commerce.
Funding Partners
Structured Funding Opportunities Across Maritime and Aviation
St Julian’s Finance is actively seeking funding partners to support the continued growth of our Yacht and Aviation Lease divisions. Through a structured and asset-backed approach, we work with funding partners looking to participate in high-value opportunities across the maritime and aviation sectors.
Our model is built around carefully structured revolving credit facilities, bespoke SPV security structures, and long-term portfolio diversification.
Revolving Credit Facility
We are seeking revolving credit facilities ranging from €10 million to €100 million to facilitate current and future transaction pipelines across our leasing divisions. Facilities are typically structured for newly originated yacht and aircraft leases through asset-backed finance models.
Revolving Credit Facility
- Revolving Credit Facility between €20 million and €100 million
- Indicative tenors between 36 and 84 months
- Facilities are typically denominated in Euros
- Floating or fixed interest structures are available
- Deal-by-deal origination with portfolio diversification over time
A Structured and Transparent Process
Our funding model is designed to provide clarity, control, and security throughout each transaction.
A Structured and Transparent Process
Each facility follows a standalone approval and annual review process, including full financial due diligence and credit assessment.
Security Structure
Bespoke SPV security structures are established for every transaction, allowing funding partners to maintain clear oversight and security throughout the lifecycle of the facility.
Drawdown Management
Each SPV benefits from tailored facility structures with separate drawdowns and transaction-specific utilisation requests.
Portfolio Oversight
Funding partners retain the ability to direct and monitor exposure, covenants, portfolio limits, and ongoing transaction performance.
Revolving Credit Facility
1. Approval & Documentation
Following approval, St Julian’s Finance signs the lease agreement with both the client and supplier. Supporting documentation, including valuation reports, insurance documentation, Bills of Sale, and transaction paperwork, is then finalised.
2. Payment Request
Once all required documentation and insurance are in place, a payment request is submitted to the funding partner alongside the relevant lease documentation.
3. Registration & Security Instatement
The yacht or aircraft is registered accordingly, while security documentation, including mortgages, SPV share pledges, and insurance pledges, is established in favour of the funding partner.
4. Delivery & Lease Commencement
Upon delivery, the lease formally commences, and ongoing instalments are managed throughout the duration of the agreement.
Multi-Tiered Security Structure
Our facilities are supported by a multi-tiered security structure designed to provide strong asset protection and proven recovery capabilities.
Security & Collateral
- Dedicated ringfenced SPV for each yacht or aircraft
- First-priority mortgage over the wholly-owned asset
- SPV share pledge structure
- Insurance pledge arrangements
- Personal guarantees from Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBOs)
- Corporate guarantee provided by SJMF
- Remarketing agreements established with suppliers or agents
Portfolio Parameters
- Maximum portfolio LTV of 70% (average 50%)
- Bullet payments are limited to a maximum value of 30%
- Target clients are HNWIs operating across Europe
- Finance exposure limited to a maximum of 20% of the client’s Net Asset Value
Built for Long-Term Partnerships
At St Julian’s Finance, our approach combines structured asset-backed finance with long-term relationship management across both maritime and aviation sectors.
We continue to support funding partners through transparent processes, diversified portfolios, and carefully structured security arrangements tailored to each transaction.
To learn more about funding partnership opportunities, contact our team today.