I’m a seasoned legal advisor with over 20 years of international experience, the last decade of which has been in development finance, sustainable lending, and impact investing. I partner with financial institutions, development banks, and purpose-driven businesses to shape transactions, get them over the finish line and support them during their life cycle.

Whether you’re launching a new initiative, deepening ESG commitments, or navigating the intricacies of cross-border finance, I bring insight and pragmatic guidance to every stage of the deal.

Development finance expertise

During my nine years at British International Investment plc (formerly CDC Group), the UK’s development finance institution (DFI), I led on complex emerging markets transactions in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. As Deputy Chief Legal Officer, I advised on:

• Corporate and financial institution lending (bilateral and syndicated)
• Climate finance, sustainable finance, and gender lens investing
• Trade loans and de-risking structures (including funded and unfunded participations)

As a consultant, I’ve partnered with European DFIs and mission-led businesses investing and operating in emerging markets, working with them to invest and grow.

European banking foundations

I began my international legal career training at Allen & Overy in London and Hong Kong, and I qualified into the firm’s Global Loans & Restructuring team in 2003.  In 2005, I joined Linklaters in Amsterdam, focusing on European leveraged acquisition finance and syndicated lending for banks, corporates, and private equity investors. I became fluent in Dutch and picked up a solid working knowledge of Dutch banking law too.

Recent transactions

• Advising a US impact fund as consultant in-house counsel, overseeing investment transactions in Cape Verde, Brazil, and Ghana. Conducting transaction document reviews, preparing restructuring term sheets for the fund as lender, and leading negotiations with borrowers and external counsel.
• Providing expert guidance as consultant in-house counsel to European development finance institutions, advising on a West African agri-commodities financing and the restructuring a portfolio investment in a pan-African financial services provider.
• Partnering with UK start-ups and early-stage businesses to advise them on acquisition financings, venture debt, and tailored funding strategies to support growth and innovation.
• Supporting a UK and Balkans-based trade finance platform, acting as consultant in-house counsel, advising on inbound and outbound financings and key corporate matters.
• Assisting a US real estate fund with a focus on Africa, advising on financing aspects of a proposed merger and refinancing of existing indebtedness, to ensure strategic alignment between the parties and mitigating risks to the fund.

Additionally, I am a legal consultant with two UK law firms, working with their teams to support their clients on transactions including:

• for Trinity International LLP, advising a multilateral development bank with a VAT facility tied to a renewables project financing in Uzbekistan, and supporting a Nigerian lender in structuring a bilateral loan for one of its customers incorporated in the UAE.
• for Acuity Law, advising borrowers and lenders on various secured real estate financing transactions across England and Wales, ensuring seamless execution and optimal structuring.