Mayer Brown is a leading international firm and is highly regarded for its London debt capital markets, derivatives and structured finance practices. The firm has developed a strong reputation advising financial institutions, asset managers and underwriters on sophisticated debt securities, capital relief transactions, structured finance, regulatory capital and digital asset issuances. The derivatives practice is led by global head Ed Parker, one of the market's most recognised practitioners, while James Taylor, Robert Flanigan and Peter Pears lead a growing debt capital markets team that is particularly active across Türkiye and other emerging markets. Mayer Brown recently hired Scott Ashton and Brian Bates from Morrison & Foerster in 2026, strengthening an already established debt team.

Key clients
Banco Santander, Barclays Bank, BNP Paribas, CDPQ, Cheyne Capital, Fédération des caisses Desjardins du Québec (FCDQ), Goldman Sachs International, ISDA, Íslandsbanki, İşbank

Highlights
Peter Pears led on the establishment of a Tokenized Securities Program for the issuance by Société Générale of digital Notes for sale under Rule 144A or 3(a)(2) to investors in the United States. The programme is a ground breaking and innovative platform permitting the issuance of a range of tokenised, digital notes on the issuer native digital platform.

The debt capital markets team also represented İşbank on the issuance of $100 million Floating Rate Digitally Native Notes due 2030 – a first for any bank or corporate in Türkiye. This transaction introduced a new framework for issuing and settling digital bonds in both Türkiye and Europe.

The derivatives team led by global practice head Ed Parker, advised Oaktree Capital Management on its acquisition of credit-linked notes in a landmark significant risk transfer transaction with Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (pbb). This matter demonstrates the team’s market-leading expertise in advising investors on complex, cross-border SRT transactions.

Testimonials
“The team combines deep knowledge and expertise with a genuine effort to understand our business. Their advice is practical, pragmatic and tailored to our commercial objectives.” – Financial services regulatory

“The team stands out for its expertise and availability.” – Capital markets

“James Taylor is highly available and brings exceptional expertise to every matter.” – Debt capital markets

“Angeli Sunmonu provides clear, concise and easy-to-understand advice.” – Structured finance

2025
“Mayer Brown are especially proficient in covered bonds and they do a lot of work in Europe, including Türkiye. They are the go-to firm for these deals” – Debt capital markets

“The team have deep technical expertise in CLOs, RMBS and CMBS transactions and are very active in the market” – Debt capital markets

“The team are very technical, commercial and practical” – Debt capital markets

“James Taylor is a very capable lawyer and highly recommended” – Debt capital markets

“Ed Parker is a leading name in the market for derivatives work – Debt capital markets

“Mayer Brown are renowned for their structured finance practice, and are top of the market when it comes to securitisation” – Structured finance