Picture:Gilbert K.S. Liu and Michael Poulton, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
What were the main strategic drivers behind the merger, and how does it strengthen your capabilities in structured finance and securitization?
The merger was about creating a truly global platform for our clients. By bringing Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin together we have the ability to serve clients in all major commercial centers, including New York, London, Paris, Madrid, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney, Dubai and Luxembourg. For legacy Kramer Levin, the addition of HSF provided instant access to incredible practice groups and sector expertise globally. For legacy HSF, the addition of 350 lawyers in New York, Washington, D.C. and Silicon Valley provided instant scale in the US and access to major sponsors, investment banks and other financial institutional clients.
We see this clearly in the securitization and structured finance practice areas where we have integrated our practices, improved client relationships and shared market and technical knowledge. We are one of the few global firms with genuine depth of expertise in the US, Europe and the UK. For lender and buy-side clients with cross-border strategies, or sponsor clients assembling a syndicate across both sides of the Atlantic, we can now offer integrated teams to cover legal, regulatory and market practice issues relevant to all aspects of the transaction.
Which areas of the securitization practice do you expect to be most complementary?
Our US securitization practice has long been recognized as an innovator, often structuring first-of-a-kind and market-leading transactions on behalf of our clients. We believe that we are the preeminent firm in the US handling esoteric asset classes and are proud to have won numerous group and transaction awards from GlobalCapital, including three consecutive Esoteric ABS Law Firm of the Year awards.
Just one example of the synergies we see in the combined firm is in energy and infrastructure. The US team has focused on bringing securitization to the energy market for decades. We securitized the first US government energy efficiency projects over 25 years ago and have closed the first deals in residential solar, commercial and industrial solar, community solar, residential PACE, commercial PACE and other energy efficiency asset classes. The firm is widely considered the dominant global firm in energy, projects and infrastructure and the combination has been incredibly complementary. We can now bring our US experience to support the global firm’s clients.
On the flip side, the firm’s energy sector expertise gives the US team the ability to work with our clients to build out even more asset classes in the industry. A great example came recently when our US team was approached about the potential securitization of revenues from electric vehicle charging infrastructure — an innovation not yet seen in the US market. The team received a comprehensive deck of EV charging finance transactions drawn from multiple jurisdictions within 30 minutes.
Our securitization teams are also known for their innovative work on new and emerging asset classes. Recently, we completed a fantastic transaction for Virgin Atlantic, securitizing the airline’s portfolio of London Heathrow landing slots.We regularly support first time issuers finance traditional and new assets and are currently looking at music catalogues, securities-based lending products, sharia-compliant home purchase plans, longevity linked cashflows, salary sacrifice loans and other assets.
Insurance capital (long a stalwart of the US market) is seeking greater exposure to structured transactions in the UK and Europe. We have been particularly active in equity release (reverse) mortgages and also other assets. Our global focus on the financial services sector means we know the issues affecting that industry end to end, allowing us to create tailored solutions for different pools of capital.
What should the market expect from Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer in the securitization space over the coming year?
Regulatory developments in the US will influence the sector in 2026, so staying ahead of those changes will be a priority for us. We expect particular focus on solar and other renewable energy, internet and other digital infrastructure as well as traditional data center transactions. In just six months since the merger, we’ve already seen the benefits of working together, pitching together and winning new mandates. Clients are looking for creative, flexible solutions in a challenging environment, and that’s where our combined platform shines. We aim to stay at the forefront of an evolving market, bringing global insight and sector expertise to every transaction.
