United Kingdom > London > Finance > Securitisation
Index of tables
Securitisation
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Leading individuals
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- Dina Albagli Herbert Smith LLP
- Stuart Axford Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
- Christopher Barratt Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
- David Barwise White & Case LLP
- Bruce Bloomingdale Mayer Brown International LLP
- Angela Clist Allen & Overy LLP
- Julian Craughan Hogan Lovells International LLP
- Julian Davies Linklaters LLP
- Stephen Day Mayer Brown International LLP
- Conor Downey Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker (Europe) LLP
- Elana Hahn Morrison & Foerster (UK) LLP
- James Harbach Linklaters LLP
- David Hudd Hogan Lovells International LLP
- Kevin Ingram Clifford Chance
- Jacky Kelly Weil, Gotshal & Manges
- David Krischer Allen & Overy LLP
- Salim Nathoo Allen & Overy LLP
- Michael Poulton Herbert Smith LLP
- David Quirolo Ashurst LLP
- Charles Roberts Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker (Europe) LLP
- Sandrine Sauvel Norton Rose LLP
- Julian Tucker Shearman & Sterling LLP
- Peter Voisey Clifford Chance
- Jonathan Walsh Baker & McKenzie LLP
- Sanjev Warna-kula-suriya Slaughter and May
- John Woodhall Sidley Austin LLP
‘Smart, constructive, creative and pragmatic’, Allen & Overy LLP is ‘a market leader on innovation and technical expertise’, with David Krischer leading a team of ‘responsive technical experts who are commercially sensitive and cost effective’. Among its deals were the first Italian project bond for Andromeda PV (the first-ever listed solar bond); and Bank of New Zealand’s first covered bond programme, both led by Tim Conduit. Christian Lambie has ‘excellent industry knowledge and enthusiasm’, and advised Tesco Property Finance’s on two CMBS-style deals; Salim Nathoo advised Nationwide on the first securitisation sold into the US by a UK building society; Angela Clist set up covered bond programmes for ANZ Banking Group and Westpac Bank; Vanessa Hardman advised Alliance & Leicester on a £1.4bn RMBS; and Sally Onions advised RBS on its €15bn covered bond programme.
Among Clifford Chance’s many ‘enthusiastic, proactive, innovative and pragmatic’ partners are Kevin Ingram, who is ‘excellent, with extensive knowledge of policy issues’; Peter Voisey, ‘a very good relationship partner, congenial rather than adversarial’; Steve Curtis, whose ‘expertise is hard to rival’; real estate deal specialist Andrew Forryan; and Simeon Radcliffe, who is ‘a future star, very calm, popular and fun’. Senior associate Derwin Jenkinson is picked out for his ‘acute commercial sense, and is sharp and extremely hardworking’. Landmark deals included advising the originator and issuer on a £4.7bn RMBS, and acting for Hertz in refinancing car rental businesses through securitisation. ‘You get the best of both worlds – the power of a big firm and the client relationship of a small firm.’
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP has ‘a very good team that scored well in thinking how the market would pan out’, and draws on the firm’s first-class regulatory, restructuring and transactional expertise to provide a ‘professional, committed and supportive’ service. Stuart Axford ‘gives commercial advice and always makes himself available’; Christopher Barratt is ‘commercial, hardworking and responsive’; and rising star Thomas Cochran is ‘exceptionally good at handling large, complex deals’. Ian Falconer advised a consortium of banks on LyondellBasell’s €450m trade receivables deal; Marcus Mackenzie advised HSBC Rail UK on an innovative financing platform; and Simeon Rudin advised banks including Nomura on the Blue City restructuring.
Linklaters LLP’s innovative work included the development of a new securitisation product – the accelerated structured bond offering (ASBO) – widely used in M&A transactions. The practice encompasses whole-business securitisations (particularly for utilities), covered bonds, and mortgage-backed securities. The team includes head of structured finance James Harbach; ABS specialist Edward Hickman; Andrew Vickery, who advised banks on a $2bn covered bonds programme for BnB NOR Boligkredit; the ‘marvellous’ Julian Davies, who acted for banks on the first-ever ASBO, a financing deal for HSBC Rail; and Anne Hoe, who represented the lead managers on a $4.5bn RMBS, the UK’s first such standalone structure since 2007. The £1.65bn restructuring of the More London Estate financing, for borrower London Bridge Holdings, was another highlight.
Young partner David Quirolo, ‘a future star whose work ethic and knowledge are impressive’, is driving the diversification of Ashurst LLP’s practice. The team, which advises many collateral managers and investment banks on CLOs, is ‘extremely hardworking and responsive, with very deep industry knowledge’; Simon Small, Fraser Wood and Michael Smith are noted for their ‘very partner-led’ work on bespoke transactions. Michael Smith returned from New York to take on the clients of Erica Handling, now at Barclays Capital. The team advised Barclays Capital as replacement swap counterparty on over 30 CDOs.
Jonathan Walsh’s team at Baker & McKenzie LLP provides ‘very prompt responses, well-informed advice, good value and an exceptional level of expertise’. Simon Porter stands out for covered bonds, deals in the Middle East and CIS, and advice to trustees. Vincent Keaveny gives ‘excellent, well-considered, thoughtful and helpful’ advice, and recently handled a £340m UK auto loans securitisation for UBS. Rebecca Ford also worked on that deal, and on the first trade receivables deal for ISS.
Hogan Lovells International LLP has ‘superb industry knowledge’. Key figures are David Hudd and Julian Craughan; the latter advised FCE Bank on its £1.3bn Globaldrive securitisations. Tauhid Ijaz stands out for restructurings, infrastructure deals and regulatory capital work, including advising in relation to $1bn of credit-linked notes for a Russian financial institution. Dennis Dillon joined from Sidley Austin LLP, adding experience in conduit deals. James Doyle’s advice is ‘top notch from a legal point of view and always provided in a commercial manner’.
Mayer Brown International LLP climbs in the ranking, partly in recognition of its active practice in private deals. The ‘very experienced’ Bruce Bloomingdale heads a popular team that includes Stephen Day and Kevin Hawken, who advised Deloitte as receivers of the Golden Key SIV; and the ‘innovative and creative’ Jeremiah Wagner, who is ‘a valuable asset, and remains calm and focused under pressure’. ‘A safe pair of hands, giving succinct and considered advice’, Drew Salvest is the only member of the team handling term securitisations.
Sidley Austin LLP is a major player in private placements, and ‘very good to deal with’, with high levels of involvement from partners who ‘always deliver what they promise’. Graham Penn represented the sponsors on the restructuring of €1.35bn of debt partly securitised in the Fleet Street 2 CMBS; and John Woodhall advised Swiss Re as counterparty in the first cat bond to transfer longevity divergence risk to the capital markets. Synthetic securitisation specialist Paul Matthews is also highly recommended.
Norton Rose LLP is ‘coming up the curve quickly’, thanks to partners such as Sandrine Sauvel and Laurence Garside, who epitomise the firm’s ‘in-depth experience and industry knowledge, fast response times and team spirit’. Kate Alliott is recommended for whole-business and infrastructure deals, and Farmida Bi’s strengths are ‘her knowledge and her industry expertise in Islamic finance’. New clients include Barclays Capital, which the firm advised in relation to a €3bn covered bond programme for Piraeus Bank.
‘The go-to firm for CMBS restructurings’, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker (Europe) LLP ‘outshines many other firms on practicality, technical creativity and honesty’. Charles Roberts is ‘the standard-bearer for the industry’; and Conor Downey ‘gives advice that clients can trust, and which reflects commercial realities’. The team advised a European bank on a £300m CMBS backed by a single large office property in London, and represented the special servicer on the £1.2bn Fleet Street 2 deal.
Shearman & Sterling LLP’s Julian Tucker advises many investors in distressed deals, and has notable expertise in whole-business securitisations and structured property transactions; he is ‘as good as anyone, highly engaged and with a light-hearted, no-nonsense approach’. The firm is active in bespoke private deals, and Ian Harvey-Samuel is experienced in restructurings.
Simmons & Simmons’ Simon Schiff advised Singer Asset Finance on a £260m equipment lease deal, and Lloyds TSB on restructuring a $4bn RMBS. Ian Sideris acts for a UK bank on the synthetic securitisation of ABS exposures, and David Roylance represented UBS as arranger on the synthetic securitisation of a €1.5bn derivatives portfolio. The practice has also seen a growing number of private placements.
‘The leading corporate issuer practice’, Slaughter and May advised Santander UK and Langton Securities on two RMBS deals, and acted for Gatwick Airport on its whole-business securitisation programme for the issue of £5bn in bonds. Sanjev Warna-kula-suriya, Marc Hutchinson and Guy O’Keefe are all experienced in the area. ‘The firm does all the thinking for all parties and so provides a complete solution.’
Weil, Gotshal & Manges ‘rates highly on all categories, from response times, business acumen and strength in depth to value for money’, and has ‘highly prized institutional knowledge’. Jacky Kelly’s ‘depth of industry and technical knowledge are second to none’; and Steven Ong, Andrew Norwood, Rupert Wall and Brian Maher are also recommended. The firm is advising Lehman Brothers Special Financing on restructuring its structured debt portfolio, and Barclays Capital on matters including a £500m credit card deal.
White & Case LLP provides ‘lots of partner time, especially on heavily negotiated private deals’. David Barwise, Gavin McLean and US-qualified Richard Riley, who has relocated from New York, advise asset managers and banks including JP Morgan and Calyon. The firm has recently handled some groundbreaking transactions in emerging markets, and advised Standard & Poor’s on Tesco’s securitisation of retail stores and distribution centres. Jeremy Trinder, now a partner, advised on the first non-conforming RMBS since the credit crunch.
‘More commercial and client aware than other firms’, Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP advised on a £600m CMBS restructuring for issuer Titan Europe. It is also advising on over 40 CMBS and RMBS deals arranged by Lehman Brothers, including Eurosail 3BL. Paul Severs has ‘a unique combination of experience, great business awareness and unparalleled client responsiveness’. Also recommended are the ‘reactive and flexible’ Tamara Box; the ‘very capable, personable and proactive’ Lucy Oddy, who joined from Clifford Chance; and Jayne Black, who advises special servicers.
CMS Cameron McKenna LLP’s recent deals include the Telereal securitisation for new client BT, and the Unique deal for longstanding client Enterprise Inns. Jason Harding is ‘an outstanding securitisation specialist, and extremely bright: he has the wow factor’; and Will Dibble is much liked by peers and clients. The firm’s international capital markets practice has a prominent position in the CEE region, and is now headed by US-qualified Daniel Winterfeldt, who joined from Simmons & Simmons.
Jake Jackaman’s team at Herbert Smith LLP is ‘first class in all respects’. Michael Poulton ‘offers a quality alternative to the top-tier practices, and brings thoughtfulness and energy to the transaction team’. He advised Barclays Capital on a £5.7bn deal for Bank of Ireland, with the highly rated Dina Albagli representing the bondholders’ trustee. Other recent work includes representing a steering committee of senior bondholders on the Fleet Street 2 CMBS.
Noted for its ‘impressive quality and client orientation’, Morrison & Foerster (UK) LLP has a global covered bond practice and excels in synthetic securitisations, and recently advised National Bank of Canada on its sale of covered bonds into the US. The team includes Peter Green, Jeremy Jennings-Mares and Elana Hahn, who joined from Mayer Brown International LLP and is ‘very attractive for complex legal issues’ thanks to ‘her multi-tasking, high-end quality and appropriateness of advice’.
Addleshaw Goddard LLP’s Mark Thomas set up a third party financing structure for Citigroup’s supply chain finance programme, and advised Barclays Capital on the sale of its mortgage servicing arm to Capita. The firm represents many building societies, including advising the Chelsea on its merger with the Yorkshire and the resulting issue of contingent convertible bonds.
Angus Duncan and Nick Shiren at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP are active in private and bespoke deals, and CDO restructurings, and are ‘great value; they read well the needs and complexities required, and keep costs down’. A €75m cat bond for underwriter Aon Benfield is a recent highlight.
Guy Usher at Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP is ‘clearly a market expert, pragmatic and user friendly’. Corporate trust specialist Gonzalo Fernandez, ABCP expert Ronit Grant and litigator Duncan Black round out a practice that is ‘very responsive and good value for money’. Regularly advising corporate trustees and SPVs, the firm also represented Danske Bank on the restructuring of the Titan 2006-4 deal.
K&L Gates’ Stephen Moller, Trevor Beadle and Andrew Petersen provide a ‘very partner-led’ service, particularly for special servicers. The firm advised Hatfield Phillips on the restructuring of over 40 CMBS deals and bonds within securitisations.
Olswang’s Charles Kerrigan focuses purely on the real estate and TMT sectors, where he sees large and innovative deals. He advised Chrysalis on the securitisation of various music catalogues.
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe (Europe) LLP’s Martin Bartlam has ‘depth of knowledge, commercial sensitivity and calmness under pressure that set him head and shoulders above many of his peers’. He assisted Standard Bank in unwinding a securitisation relating to zinc mining projects in Yemen.
Vanessa Therrode at SJ Berwin LLP advised Apex Credit Management on a £50m warehouse line for SPVs to fund the acquisition of discounted distressed consumer debt. The litigation team often represents investment banks, with Nick Brocklesby the key figure.
Paul Kay at Speechly Bircham LLP has won a number new investment bank clients, but the team, valued for its ‘partner-led service’, mainly acts for private banks and investment managers.