Banking, Finance & Private Equity
Our Banking & Finance practice delivers sophisticated legal solutions across the full spectrum of financial services and transactions. With deep industry knowledge and extensive experience, our team serves as trusted advisors to leading financial institutions, investment banks, private equity firms, corporate borrowers, and alternative lenders. We combine technical excellence with commercial awareness to structure and execute complex financial transactions while navigating evolving regulatory frameworks.
Our expertise encompasses all aspects of lending and financing transactions, from syndicated loans and acquisition financing to asset-based lending and structured finance. We excel in project finance, real estate finance, and infrastructure funding, providing comprehensive guidance throughout the transaction lifecycle. Our team's experience extends to debt capital markets, including bond issuances, securitizations, and innovative financing structures, ensuring optimal outcomes for our diverse client base.
In the rapidly evolving financial technology sector, we guide both traditional financial institutions and fintech innovators through regulatory challenges and opportunities. Our practice maintains cutting-edge expertise in digital banking, payment systems, cryptocurrency regulations, and blockchain technology applications. We help clients navigate complex regulatory requirements while fostering innovation in financial services delivery.
The firm's regulatory compliance practice provides strategic counsel on banking regulations, capital requirements, and risk management frameworks. We assist clients in implementing robust compliance programs, conducting internal audits, and responding to regulatory examinations and enforcement actions. Our team regularly advises on anti-money laundering (AML) requirements, know-your-customer (KYC) protocols, and sanctions compliance, helping institutions maintain their regulatory standing while pursuing business objectives.
With expertise in cross-border transactions, we coordinate multi-jurisdictional financings and regulatory matters through our global network. Our practice group routinely handles financial restructuring and insolvency matters, providing strategic advice to creditors, debtors, and other stakeholders. We stay at the forefront of ESG-linked financing and sustainable banking practices, helping clients develop and implement green financing strategies that align with evolving market expectations and regulatory requirements.
financial derivatives
Advanced investments require valuable securities and low risks for the investor. Securities form the basis of derivatives such as forward contracts, stock options, swap contracts and warrants. Our expertise in various tiers and forms of underlying assets includes stocks, bonds, interest rates, currencies, credit, equity, commodities, market indexes and other equities.
acquisition & leveraged financing
The acquisition of another company/business concern entails financing and adequate risk mitigation. The Firma team advises and handles transactions for acquisition and leveraged financing, including subordinate debt and high yield bonds.
lease & asset finance
The team also provides Advisory services and carries out due diligence on matters relating to leasing and asset financing wherein a lessee is permitted to utilise the lessor’s equipment/asset for agreed lease payments and acquiring finance for owning an assets
non-bank loans
The availability and accessibility of credit for small, medium and large scale business enterprises is made easier through the mechanism of non-banking financial institutions. These institutions operate under a legal and regulatory framework. Non-bank loans vary from loans from private institutional investors, non-government grants and alternative sources of debt financing. Thus, proffering sound legal advice and risk mitigation strategies among others is our watch word.
project finance
It is trite that long term infrastructures, public utilities and industrial projects require project finance and a sustainable repayment structure and system. The Firma Advisory renders legal and advisory services in sector specific project financing for distinctive sectors in and out of Nigeria.
debt capital market
Raising funds for certain acquisitions, refinancing and restricting of extant debt can be done through the capital market. Debt capital market which includes issuance and sale of bonds, commercial papers, convertibles, warrants, medium term notes, depository receipts and other securities
securitization
Through securitization, loans assets are converted into marketable securities by selling same to investors with the aim of raising funds. Securitization It includes synthetic securitization of various assets, deployment of securitization structures among others. Under such transactions, mitigating risk and protecting the parties is key. These can be realized through sound legal opinion and measures which form part of the services we render.