Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP > London, England > Firm Profile

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
CITYPOINT
ONE ROPEMAKER STREET
LONDON
EC2Y 9HR
England

Email firm Visit website 020 7453 1000 020 7860 1150

Finance > High yield Tier 2

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP has a stellar reputation in New York law deals, in which it predominantly acts for corporate issuers in high-value bond offerings, though it is starting to handle a growing workload for underwriters. The firm has 'very strong technical and commercial knowledge of the market'. London managing partner Philip Boeckman

and co-head of the EMEA capital markets practice George Stephanakis lead the high yield group, in which key partner Alyssa Caples has 'very strong knowledge, is always available, and manages transactions quietly and efficiently'. European counsel Margaret Rallings also plays a pivotal role in some of the firm's largest deals. Boeckman and Rallings acted for the initial purchasers of an €850m offering of 144A/Reg. S high yield senior secured notes offering for Loarre Investments, a portfolio company of CVC Funds, to fund the company's investment in LaLiga in exchange for an interest in media and TV rights. Caples assisted INEOS Finance with the offering of €400m and $425m in high yield senior secured notes.

Practice head(s):

Philip Boeckman; George Stephanakis

Other key lawyers:

Alyssa Caples; Margaret Rallings

Testimonials

‘Very strong technical and commercial knowledge of the market.’

‘Alyssa Caples – very strong knowledge, always available, manages transactions quietly and efficiently.’

Key clients

Burford Capital

Casino Group

Goldstory

INEOS

Lion Capital

NH Hotel Group

Picard Groupe

Premier Foods

Sappi

Various Financial Institutions

Work highlights

Represented the initial purchasers in the €850million high-yield senior secured notes offering by CVC to finance its partnership with LaLiga.
Represented INEOS in its €400million and$425million high-yield senior secured notes offering.
Represented the initial purchasers in the €272.5 million high-yield senior secured notes offering to refinance, in part, the bridge facility financing the acquisition of Hunkemöller by leading Dutch investors, including Parcom and Opportunity Partners.

Finance > Debt capital markets Tier 3

Clients praise the capital markets team at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP for its 'availability, profound legal knowledge, and practical approach'. The firm is best known for its high yield work, though it also investment grade bond issuance for corporates and sovereigns. Co-heads of the EMEA capital markets practice Philip Boeckman

has 'a very good understanding of clients' needs', and George Stephanakis are the key partners. European counsel Lawrence Verhelst, who acts for corporate and sovereign issuers and financial institutions, has 'very solid US law knowledge and a practical approach to solving legal issues'. Boeckman and Verhelst recently acted for European Investment Bank in six registered notes offerings with a total value of $25bn, including a $5bn Climate Awareness Bond and a $4bn Sustainability Awareness Bond.

Practice head(s):

Philip Boeckman; George Stephanakis

Other key lawyers:

Lawrence Verhelst

Testimonials

‘Philip Boeckman has very good economic understanding and understanding of client needs; he has the experience and practical approach to solve legal issues.’

‘Lawrence Verhelst has a very good understanding of the client environment and circumstances; very solid US law knowledge; he always takes a practical approach to solve legal issues.’

‘Very high level of partner involvement – they are very familiar with the specific issues relevant in the various European countries.’

‘We work with Philip Boeckman on a regular basis. What makes him outstanding is his quick understanding of questions at hand and his low key, emphatic way how to explain issues to clients and getting parties to agree.’

Key clients

British American Tobacco

Casino Group

European Investment Bank

Prosus

RELX Capital

Sappi

Work highlights

Represented the European Investment Bank (“EIB”) in six registered notes offerings totalling $25 billion since January 2022.
Represented B.A.T Capital Corporation and B.A.T. International Finance p.l.c. in three registered notes offerings totalling $3.1 billion.
Represented RELX Capital Inc. in its $500 million registered notes offering.

Finance > Acquisition finance

Firms to watch

The arrival in March 2023 of well-respected duo Korey Fevzi and Philip Stopford from Shearman & Sterling LLP was a game-changing move for Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP‘s London acquisition finance team, adding UK-qualified practitioners to complement its strong New York law high yield offering.

Rising stars

Chantelle Dovey - Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP

Next Generation Partners

Philip Stopford - Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP

Finance > Bank lending: investment grade debt and syndicated loans

Firms to watch

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP made a significant double hire in early 2023, taking on Korey Fevzi and Philip Stopford from Shearman & Sterling LLP adding notable capabilities in syndicated lending and direct lending transactions and gifting the elite US firm a long-anticipated English law offering.

United States > Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)

Next Generation Partners

Sharonmoyee Goswami – Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP

United States > Finance > Financial services regulation

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP’s bank regulatory offering is led by David Portilla, and handles matters encompassing matters relating to banking, cryptoasset, digital currency and M&A transactions. The firm’s reach was further enhanced by the opening of a new office in Washington DC led by Jelena McWilliams, who joined in July 2022 from her previous role as the chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. In August 2022, Elad Roisman joined the firm from the SEC, bringing with him extensive knowledge of reporting and disclosure obligations and corporate governance.

Leading lawyers

David Portilla – Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP

Practice head(s):

David Portilla

Other key lawyers:

Jelena McWilliams; Elad Roisman

Testimonials

‘Government experience & ability to understand and adapt to the client’s specific needs. Also availability to deal with any type of problem with thoughtful advice.‘

Key clients

Afterpay

Cowen

Credit Suisse

Dfinity

ECN

Financial Services Forum

GreenSky

Morgan Stanley

Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association

Silicon Valley Bank

Texas Capital Bancshares

Westpac

Work highlights

Advising to Cowen in connection with its pending $1.9bn acquisition by TD Bank.
Advising Texas Capital Bank in connection with the $3.4bn sale of BankDirect Capital Finance to Truist.

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is widely recognised as one of the preeminent law firms in the world. Each of its practices is highly regarded and its lawyers are recognised for their commitment to the representation of their clients’ interests.

The firm: Founded in 1819, Cravath provides legal advice to companies located around the world. The firm has a rich, century-long legacy of commitment to Europe and has maintained a dedicated London office and team, one of the largest contingents of US lawyers in the city, since 1973. Our international finance practice encompasses English law-qualified lawyers who advise on the English law aspects of UK and cross-border financings.

Types of work undertaken: Cravath’s London office is uniquely positioned to advise on the full spectrum of leveraged financings, including high-yield bond offerings and direct lending, syndicated loan and other types of acquisition financing transactions, as well as restructurings and distressed financings. Our international bank and bond practice is one of the most highly regarded in the world and the Firm has consistently ranked at or near the top since market inception.

We regularly advise corporate issuers and borrowers, investment banks, financial sponsors and alternative lenders on a wide range of high-yield, bridge and other bespoke debt financings, including many offerings by first-time issuers and some of the most complex or novel transactions. Our lawyers have handled many of the initial high-yield bond financings in Europe, as well as many significant recent leveraged bank financings. We have introduced innovations such as the standard intercreditor provisions used in Europe, loan options in lieu of bond financings, “all-bond” structures and the first toggle notes used in Europe.

Other offices: New York, Washington, D.C.

Department	Name	Email	Telephone
Presiding Partner	Faiza J Saeed
Managing Partner of London Office, Co‑Head of the Capital Markets Practice for EMEA	Philip J Boeckman
Co‑Head of the Capital Markets Practice for EMEA	George A Stephanakis

Name	Position	Profile
Mr Philip Boeckman	Philip J. Boeckman is a partner in Cravath’s Corporate Department and serves…	View Profile
Mr Roberto Bruno	Roberto Bruno focuses his practice on cross‑border, sophisticated and high‑profile debt (including high‑yield)…	View Profile
Ms Alyssa Caples	Alyssa K. Caples is a partner in Cravath’s Corporate Department, focusing on…	View Profile
Mr Korey Fevzi	Korey Fevzi is a partner in Cravath’s Corporate Department. Mr. Fevzi advises…	View Profile
Mr Jackson Lam	Jackson Lam focuses his practice on complex cross‑border leveraged transactions, syndicated lending…	View Profile
Ms Nicoleta Lupea	Nicoleta D. Lupea focuses her practice primarily on advising clients in mergers…	View Profile
Ms Virginie Marier	Virginie Marier focuses her practice on capital markets transactions, including cross‑border high‑yield…	View Profile
Ms Margaret Rallings	Margaret R. M. Rallings serves as European counsel in Cravath’s Corporate Department.…	View Profile
Mr George Stephanakis	George A. Stephanakis is a partner in Cravath’s Corporate Department and serves…	View Profile
Mr Philip Stopford	Philip Stopford is a partner in Cravath’s Corporate Department. He focuses his…	View Profile
Mr Lawrence Verhelst	Lawrence J. Verhelst serves as European counsel in Cravath’s Corporate Department. He…	View Profile