What are the most significant cases, projects and/or transactions that you and/or your legal team have recently been involved in?

Amidst this year’s challenging geopolitical landscape, our priorities for the Bank’s Supply Chain Management business are to strengthen our existing origination and syndication capabilities and to expand our customer reach via collaborations with Fintech platform companies such as PrimeRevenue and Taulia, particularly in the fields of payables and pre-payment services.

On Fintech platform collaboration, a key task for the Legal team is to ensure that the suite of interlocking documents, often presented by such fintechs, creates legally enforceable obligations across multiple jurisdictions so that the Bank can offer services to an expanded customer base while ensuring low default risk and high recoverability.

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crisis to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Periods of instability or crisis demand the best legal talent to help steer the Bank through troubled waters. I believe in fostering an internal culture where high technical competence and good professional demeanour are valued above more emotional aspects, such as years of service. Talent recognition and promotions should be based on merit and ability. If strong talent is not timely recognised, such individuals may move on to greener pastures, resulting in an overall weakened organisation that will struggle to stay afloat in rising waters.  

Have you had any experiences during your career as a lawyer that stand out as particularly unique or interesting?

I am deeply interested in Asian and European cultures, and in finding commonalities between them. In my 22-year career, I have negotiated transactions on the ground in almost all of the 12 jurisdictions in APAC where BNP Paribas operates, and have also travelled widely in Europe and parts of the American Northeast. An open and curious mind helps to bring ideas together, bridge cultural and legal differences, and essentially makes one a more effective lawyer.

What is a cause, business or otherwise, that you are passionate about? Why is this?

Outside of work, I am an avid runner. I ran my first marathon in 1991, finishing in 5 hours 11 minutes. Since then, I have embraced running as a constant test of resilience, as it strikes a chord close to my heart — that we must always climb the highest peaks, not because it is easy, but because it is hard. My goal is to complete a marathon in under three hours before I turn 50.