The Legal 500

Kim & Chang’s heavyweight finance practice has a global clientele that includes Crédit Agricole and Hanjin Shipping. It has been particularly active for Korea Development Bank, advising it in a $133.7m shipping finance deal for Glovis. It also acted for Oriental Brewery Co on the refinancing of KKR and Affinity’s acquisition of the major Asian brewery from Anheuser-Busch InBev. Team head Kye-Sung Chung comes highly recommended.

Lee & Ko’s finance team is ‘dedicated and professional’. 2010 saw it advise the lenders, including Korea Development Bank and Woori Bank, on their refinancing of the Oriental Brewery LBO. Practice head Woo Young Jung is ‘dedicated and professional, and provides prompt and adequate legal advice on Korean legal aspects for international financing deals which involve Korean sponsors, borrowers, and export credit agencies’.

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s finance practice acted for WiniaMando Inc in refinancing and restructuring $106m/KRW40bn dual currency facilities, and for KEXIM on restructuring several of Mediterranean Shipping Company’s ship finance facilities. Eui Jong Chung heads the practice, which was recently joined by Seung Hwa Hwang from Jipyong & Jisung.

Shin & Kim’s banking practice has a strong lender-side focus, but also handles mandates for borrowers. Kyung Don Lee and Young-Hee Jo acted for four Korean real estate funds established and managed by ING Real Estate Investment Management Korea, in relation to the sale and leaseback of six retail properties owned by Lotte Shopping Co. The team’s size was significantly increased at associate level, and Michael Chang joined from Allens Arthur Robinson.

The ‘responsive, helpful’ banking practice at Yulchon wins plaudits for its ‘in-depth knowledge of offshore financing’. It has a strong borrower client base, and recently acted for Lotte Properties on a $100m loan to be used by its Chinese subsidiary. Practice head Hee Woong Yoon is praised for his ‘great knowledge and experience’, and leads a team with ‘a deep pool of talent’. Christopher Cho is also recommended.

Hwang Mok Park P.C. acted for new client GE Capital on securitisation transactions, and advised VW Financial Services on the establishment of a subsidiary in South Korea. Sang Il Park is recommended.

2010 saw Jipyong & Jisung take an active role in restructuring transactions and acquisition finance related to unsold apartments. It also acted for Korea Exchange Bank in syndicated loan financing for the construction of apartments in Seoul, and for Korea Shinhan Bank in a syndicated financing for the acquisition of shares in TK Chemical.

Highlights for Yoon & Yang LLC’s finance practice included acting for Daewoo Securities in a KRW100bn ABS transaction, notable as the first such transaction to use a bridge finance-type structure. It also acted for a syndicate of lenders in a KRW580bn loan extension to two investment funds to fund their acquisition of Center One Building. Soonghee Lee heads the practice.

Barun Law has a growing presence in cross-border transactions, and acted for STATS Chip PAC Limited in relation to the Korean aspects of refinancing a $360m facility. Other clients include Bombardier and Deutsche Bank.

Kim Chang & Lee handles lender-side transactions for both international and domestic banks. Kyung-Joon Choi and Soo Chang Kim are the key figures.

Kim, Choi & Lim handles ABS transactions for the likes of Shinyoung Securities, and also acts in project finance matters for POSCO. Hee Taek Lim is recommended.

Law Firm Pureun has expertise in bank lending, loans, securitisation and project finance. Founding partner Chul-Sub Jung is the key contact.

Sechang & Co. advises shipbuilders on financing matters, and provides advice to NokShipJa Holdings and Woori Bank on SOC projects. HaeYeon Song and Thomas YJ Kim are the key figures.