Clifford Chance fields a deep bench and wide-ranging practice in Singapore that is well placed to handle transactional matters involving over-the-counter (OTC) and exchange traded derivatives, as well as structured products. The team attracts instructions from an array of EU, US, Singapore, Chinese and other regional banks, and is also often retained by stocks and futures exchanges and clearing houses, trade repositories, brokers, corporates, and sovereign wealth funds, among other clients. Its broad regulatory capabilities are also noteworthy; clients regularly turn to the group for advice on ongoing global reforms and the future of financial markets across the Asia Pacific region. On this front, the firm’s in-depth knowledge of matters concerning the interaction between Singapore and global regulation is unparalleled. It maintains a strong relationship with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), having provided legal industry consultation on new regulations relating to clearing of derivatives, margin for uncleared swaps, licensing regimes and product definitions to the Securities and Futures Act. The group is jointly led by five partners: Paul Landless, who has a strong track record in structured transactions, including commodities trading; financial services regulatory expert Lena Ng; Johannes Juette, who specialises in US federal securities law; debt capital markets partner Gareth Deiner; and Kabir Singh, whose experience includes derivaties-related disputes. The recommended Miles Binney specialises in financial markets, derivatives and trading.

With one of the longest standing practices in Asian finance law, Norton Rose Fulbright‘s Singapore group brings together transactional and regulatory expertise in derivatives and structured products across the US, Middle East, Europe and Asia. The team, which has traditionally provided assistance to leading financial institutions, especially Asia-Pacific, Middle Eastern and Islamic banking clients, has been advising a growing number of other derivatives users, commodity producers, and trustee entities. The practice reported a recent uptick in regulatory and advisory work concerning the local implementation of global reforms, financial markets entities licensing and regulatory obligations across the region. Islamic derivatives and new Islamic trading products are areas of particular strength for the team, which is under the leadership of Colin Rice, an English law qualified and registered foreign lawyer practising Singapore law. Rice’s ‘pragmatic legal advice‘ in the areas of derivative-linked debt securities, Islamic products, margin loans, hedging transactions and structured commodity financings is praised by clients.