James Clayton-Payne

James Clayton-Payne is an English-qualified partner in our Singapore M&A team. James has practiced in London, Hong Kong and Singapore and has been based permanently in Asia since 2010. James advises on Southeast Asian and Indian cross-border M&A and joint ventures with a particular focus on the private equity, venture capital, FIG (including bancassurance), technology, power, oil and gas, infrastructure and natural resources sectors.

James has worked in-house at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, the Royal Bank of Scotland and Morgan Stanley. James is recognized as one of five “Next Generation M&A lawyers” by The Legal 500 and by IFLR1000 as a “Rising Star”.

Private Equity

• Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan on its investment into Spandana, an Indian microfinance company
• Capital Square Partners (CSP) in connection with acquisition of ESM Holdings Limited, the holding company of the Aegis group, from AGC Holdings Limited, a wholly owned portfolio company of Essar Global Limited
• Everstone Capital Partners on the purchase of C3/CustomerContactChannels Holdings Inc. by its joint venture vehicle between Everstone Capital Partners III L.P. and Sunrise BPO Pte. Ltd., Everise Holdings (US), LLC.
• Standard Chartered Private Equity on its disposal of multiple portfolio companies in Africa, India, China and SE Asia
• Standard Chartered Private Equity on various primary investments in SE Asia, India and Africa
• Barings Private Equity on various primary investments in the UK and Asia
• Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Asset’s pre-IPO sale of APTT, an Asian broadband company
• Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Estate’s investment in a power station in the Philippines
• NewQuest Capital Partners on its secondary acquisition of certain portfolio companies from Draper Fisher Jurvetson
• ADV Partners on its investments in India and Asia
• Goldman Sachs PIA on its investments in India
• AREA Property Partners on its investment in a leisure complex in Eastern Europe
• TDR Capital on its acquisition of 333 British pubs from Mitchells and Butler plc

Private and Public M&A, Capital Markets and Joint Ventures

• An international oil company with respect to a potential acquisition of an interest in the MLNG TIGA Project in Malaysia
• PETRONAS on Saudi Aramco’s US$8 billion investment in the RAPID Refinery and Petrochemical project in Malaysia
• General Electric on the sale of its commercial lending and leasing business to a consortium backed by AION Capital Partners
• A consortium of Japanese bidders on the proposed acquisition of a greenfield power station asset in the Philippines
• An international bank on its bid for Coutts’ private banking business in Asia
• BP on its Indonesian oil storage facility joint venture with the Bakries
• The financiers in respect of Solusi Tunas Pratama’s acquisition of telecommunication towers from XL Axiata in Indonesia
• Noble Group on various disposals and investments in Asia
• An international commodities house on the disposal of its palm oil business in Indonesia
• Sun Life in respect of its insurance joint venture with CIMB in Indonesia
• A buyer in respect of the privatization of a Singapore insurer by way of voluntary delisting*
• Citi Group on the restructuring of its Asian funds business
• A Big Four accountancy firm on the restructuring of its Asian business
• Arcapita on its disposal of Northern Ireland Electricity Board to ESB
• Lloyds TSB and HBOS on the disposal and restructuring of its non-performing property loan portfolio
• Cash confirmation exercises for various financial advisers on UK takeovers

Insurance M&A and Bancassurance

• Standard Chartered on its exclusive pan-Asian life insurance bancassurance arrangements with Prudential
• DBS on its exclusive pan-Asian life insurance bancassurance arrangements with ManuLife
• Citi on its exclusive pan-Asian life insurance bancassurance arrangements with AIA
• CIMB on its bancassurance arrangements in South East Asia
• Sun Life on its bancassurance arrangements in Indonesia
• Friends Provident International on its bancassurance arrangements in Singapore*
• A Thai bank on exiting its bancassurance arrangements in Thailand
• Zurich Insurance on its tied agency and distribution arrangements in Singapore*
• Royal Sun Alliance on its acquisition of a non-life insurance company and associated bancassurance arrangements in Malaysia
• AXA on the acquisition of HSBC’s non-life Asian insurance business and related bancassurance arrangements
• Friends Provident PLC on its UK public takeover by Resolution
• Friends Provident PLC on the demerger of Foreign and Colonial (F&C)
• Avicennia (Khazanah Nasional) on its strategic insurance M&A in SE Asia

• Mergers & Acquisitions

• OXFORD INSTITUTE OF LEGAL PRACTICE, LPC

• OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY, GDL

• UNIVERSITY OF DURHAM, B.A., English Literature (First Class Honours)