Dubai office strengthens capital markets practice with partner hire

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has announced the appointment of capital markets partner Hamed Afzal in its Dubai office.

Hamed, who joins from Akin Gump, is an English-qualified capital markets lawyer with broad experience spanning debt and equity capital markets, and public company matters. 

He has advised corporates, sovereigns, leading financial institutions and corporate trustees on conventional and Shariah compliant debt capital markets matters across product lines (including Sukuk, investment grade and high yield conventional bonds, regulatory capital issuances, securitisation/asset backed instruments and restructurings). 

On the equity capital markets side, Hamed has advised corporates and leading global investment banks on initial public offerings, secondary offerings, block trades, technical listings and other related transactions across numerous regional and international listing venues. 

Hamed also has significant experience advising various stakeholders on public company related mandates, including advising bidders and target companies on navigating regional takeover regimes for public M&A transactions. 

Mohammed Paracha, head of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Middle East practice, said:

“We are excited to welcome Hamed to Norton Rose Fulbright and recognise his appointment as an excellent enhancement to our banking and corporate finance offering throughout the region. The addition of Hamed’s knowledge and experience, particularly in relation to debt as well as equity capital markets, will help us to further enhance our market-leading, finance capabilities in the Middle East and further support the needs of our regional clientele.” 

Hamed Afzal said: 

“I am delighted to be joining Norton Rose Fulbright’s renowned Middle East practice. The firm's market-leading position in banking and the longstanding reputation of its international corporate finance offering dovetails perfectly with my own practice, which sits at the intersection of banking and corporate finance. I am excited to be joining a firm which is a true leader in these practice areas, having worked on some of the most significant and innovative developments in the Middle East and beyond, and I look forward to helping support our clients on many of the region’s most notable matters.” 

Norton Rose Fulbright advises across the full spectrum of legal banking and finance matters, acting for parties ranging from multinational lenders to growth corporations. Its lawyers are experienced in the full range of debt and equity transactions in the global capital markets, including standalone debt issuances, Sukuk, securitizations, covered, convertible, exchangeable, taxable and tax-exempt bonds, MTN/CP programs, structured products, equity-linked issuances and Public-Private Partnerships (PPP).