The Legal 500

Hong Kong > Asset finance

Editorial sections

Other

All countries

Index of tables

  1. Asset finance
  2. Leading Individuals

Leading Individuals

This section recognises firms’ aircraft and ship financing capabilities on both the lender and borrower side.

Mayer Brown JSM continues to maintain a leading practice, and has a top reputation for aviation and ship finance work. Alastair MacAulay is noted for his longstanding experience, and recently advised ICBC Financial Leasing Company on its first cross-border vessel leasing transaction (worth $150m) to finance a 13,100 TEU container vessel. The ‘very good’ Richard Stock has aviation expertise, and advises on export credit-supported financings, aircraft-secured loans and hire purchase arrangements. Clients include Cathay Pacific, Bank of China and Mitsui OSK Lines.

The team at Reed Smith Richards Butler has an outstanding depth of experience, advising borrowers and lenders on ship and aviation finance, with banking partner Andrew Brown at the helm of the practice. Brown acts for ship owners, including Noble Group and China Shipping, as well as financiers. A ‘leading light’ in the aviation sphere, Emma Casdagli has a ‘fantastic reputation’ and counts Cathay, ICBC and several ECAs as clients. Chris Tang leads on the ship finance side. The team recently handled a $800m financing for LNG carriers for China Shipping and Mitsui OSK Lines, as part of their joint venture. Peter Lee made partner in January 2011.

Baker & McKenzie provides a ‘strong service’ and is ‘very experienced’ in aircraft leasing and financing work. The ‘excellent’ Andrew Lockhart advised DBS Bank as lender in two financings in 2010. Lockhart continues to act for Thai Airways. The ‘extremely dedicated and efficient’ Allen Ng is ‘full of energy’, and regularly advises Air China. The ‘knowledgeable and experienced’ Harvey Lau provides support from the Shanghai office.

Clifford Chance is renowned for its experience in advising lenders on financing matters. Consultant Paul Greenwell is rated for his strength in Japanese-related asset finance work. Singapore-based Simon Briscoe is recommended for his leading aviation finance practice.

Norton Rose Hong Kong’s shipping finance team acts for an impressive roster of clients, including DBS Bank and COSCO. In November 2010, Davide Barzilai advised Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank and other lead arrangers on Genting Hong Kong’s $600m syndicated loan facility agreement, secured against Genting’s eight-vessel Asian fleet. Barzilai also has Islamic finance capabilities. Elsewhere, the team advised a Chinese bank on a RMB facility for the financing of two bulk carriers. Counsel Jonathan Silver is recommended.

Fielding a leading shipping practice, Ince & Co advises shipowners and lenders on financing transactions. David Beaves recently advised a PRC bank regarding a loan facility to finance an 8,888 TEU container vessel. The team has also recently acted for a Taiwan-based shipping company.

Stephenson Harwood has a solid ship finance practice, and advises several PRC and Hong Kong banks on structured financings. Practice head Mark Reed advises on non-contentious matters. Newly made-up partners Stephanie Wong and Hongkai Zhou are also recommended. Zhou recently advised the Bank of China on a $517m loan to Pacific International to finance 14 container ships built in China, backed by Sinosure lease insurance policies. Global head of aviation Paul Ng provides support from Singapore, and acts for AirAsia, Metrojet, Tibet Airlines and Lion Air.

As part of an Asia-wide practice drawing on strengths in Singapore, Tokyo and Beijing, White & Case’s Hong Kong asset finance team is led by Hallam Chow, who is noted for his aircraft finance experience. In 2010, Chow advised Nomura on a sharia-compliant sukuk issuance of $100m to finance the purchase of a Boeing 737-800 aircraft and an Airbus A320-232, leased to Norwegian Air Shuttle and Wizz Air Hungary respectively. Clients include China Development Bank and Jumbo Power Link.

Ashurst Hong Kong in association with Jackson Woo & Associates’ asset finance capabilities stem from the firm’s projects and energy experience. Recent highlights for practice head Matthias Schemuth include advising Mitsui & Co on the lease financing of locomotives to Malaysian rail operator Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad. Schemuth also advised Investec Bank on the financing of two corporate jets for IFA Aviation, Dubai.

Henry Fung at Holman Fenwick Willan is singled out for his ship finance experience. Fung recently led in advising a leisure and hospitality enterprise on a revolving credit facility, provided by a syndicate of banks. Patrick Cheung made partner in April 2011.

Search News and Articles

Press releases

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to

Legal Developments in Hong Kong

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to

  • LIABILITY FOR DIRECTORS OF LISTED COMPANIES – NOT JUST FOR FRAUD

    Article by Timothy Loh and Sherry Xiao
    - Timothy Loh, Solicitors

  • Hedge fund euthanasia?

    Are the Courts sealing the fate of struggling hedge funds too early or should they be given further time to recover and realize their potential for investors? 
    - Harney Westwood & Riegels

  • A Brief introduction to an amendment of the 2008 Patent Law

    New provisions: "Prior Art" refers to an art publicly known within and outside the country before the filing date; while Prior Design refers to a design publicly known within and outside the country before the filing date. Prior Art include arts that are being publicly disclosed in publications worldwide, publicly used or made known to public in the country in any other manner before the filing date (or priority date, in case a priority is claimed)
    - Wenping & Co.

  • BVI Securities and Investment Business Bill 2010 receives its first reading

    The long-awaited Securities and Investment Business Bill, 2010 (commonly referred to as “SIBA”) received its first reading by the BVI House of Assembly on 18 March 2010. This follows public consultation in Summer 2009.
    - Harney Westwood & Riegels

  • Cayman Investment Company Obtains Chapter 15 Protection in the United States

    The United States’ Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware has recognised the liquidation of a Cayman company, Saad Investments Finance Company (No5) Limited (“SIFCO5”) (an SPV established to operate as an investment company), as a “foreign main proceeding” under Chapter 15 of the United States’ Bankruptcy Code.
    - Harney Westwood & Riegels

  • BVI to update Intellectual Property laws

    As the British Virgin Islands continues to play a vital role in facilitating global trade and investment, it turns its attention to helping its more than 60,000 new companies per year build a business environment where innovation can be a key economic driver. Towards this end, the BVI Financial Services Commission (the “FSC”), which is the public body with responsibility for, among other things, administering the intellectual property laws of the BVI, announced on 5 January 2010 the establishment of a Focus Group to review and revise the existing IP laws
    - Harney Westwood & Riegels

  • BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS CORPORATE ARRANGEMENT SCHEMES

    With a global economic downturn in full swing, companies around the world are looking for ways to safeguard their future existence. The strategies employed to do so are numerous and varied but a number of companies have employed the use of corporate arrangement schemes entered into with their creditors, investors and other stakeholders as a way to refocus and preserve their business.
    - Harney Westwood & Riegels

  • A Primer to Buying Securities Firms, Asset Managers, Insurers and Banks

    The meltdown in global financial markets has triggered a consolidation of the financial services industry as securities firms, asset managers, insurers and banks alike spin-off assets and restructure their operations to shore up capital. These transactions are often global in nature, involving substantial Hong Kong operations. In this article, we review the basic Hong Kong legal and regulatory framework for these transactions and present some lessons learned.
    - Timothy Loh, Solicitors

  • The PCCW Privatization: A Guide to the Applicable Law for Schemes of Arrangement

    Allegations of share splitting in the proposed privatization of PCCW have raised an important question as to how the statutory majority to approve a scheme of arrangement should be determined. This question is significant both in the short-term for investors trading PCCW and in the long-term in the context of future schemes of arrangement. In this article, we  examine the applicable laws and regulations with a view to providing hedge funds and other investors with guidance.
    - Timothy Loh, Solicitors

  • New Proposals to Regulate Mis-Selling of Investment Funds & Structured Products in Hong Kong

    The recent global financial crisis has resulted in an upswing in regulatory action throughout world markets. In Hong Kong, the Securities and Futures Commission (“SFC”) has proposed a slew of new requirements, some of which have already been implemented retroactively and without industry consultation. In this article we examine these ongoing developments in SFC policy and their effectiveness in reaching a fair balance between investor protection and costs to the investor and the financial industry.
    - Timothy Loh, Solicitors

Press Releases worldwide

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to
© 2012 www.legal500.com