Investment Funds & Management

Our experienced lawyers advise on derivatives and a full range of trading arrangements, including ISDAs, GMRAs, prime brokerage, and FX documentation. They support asset managers and institutional investors in navigating complex contractual, collateral, and regulatory requirements, ensuring robust, compliant frameworks for efficient and secure trading activity.

• Advised on derivatives trading and securities financing: regulatory advice and counterparty documentation and related collateral exchange and management arrangements.   
• Acted as principal derivatives and securities financing agreement negotiator for a large London hedge fund and UCITS manager.   
• Advised on a structured total return swap access to the China ‘A share’ market with a domestic Chinese counterparty for a London fundofhedge funds manager.    
• Advised (and negotiated with counterparties of) a large UK steel producer on its ISDA Master Agreements for commodities derivatives and foreign exchange contracts.    
• Advised a UK pension scheme on their ISDAs, CSAs, GMRAs, FX and other trading agreements with multiple counterparties relating to a £1.5bn discretionary mandate.   
• Advised a MiFID investment manager on ISDAs/CSAs relating to its Ireland domiciled hedge fund.   

Our lawyers advise fund and asset managers on the full suite of service provider agreements, including administrator, custodian, regulatory hosting, platform, and other operational contracts. They bring commercially focused insight to negotiating and structuring these arrangements, ensuring compliance and seamless support across the investment management lifecycle. 

• Advised managers on all fund service agreements for fund launches (custodian, administration, domiciliation and other relevant agreements).   
• Advised on fund distribution agreements with third party UK and non-UK promoters of fund interests.    
• Advised on SYSC 8 back office outsourcing agreements.   
• Drafting intra group service agreements between offices of larger asset managers.   
• Advised on regulatory hosting arrangements including appointed representative and AIFM platforming agreements.   
• Advised on trading arrangements for funds and managed accounts –PB, ISDAs and CSAs; MiFID/EMIR reporting and other agreements.   

With deep regulatory insight, our experienced lawyers advise fund managers on all aspects of fund marketing and distribution, including crossborder promotional regimes and regulatory requirements. They ensure marketing strategies and materials meet UK and EU standards, supporting compliant and effective investor outreach across multiple jurisdictions. 

• Advised on crossborder marketing of investment funds and promotional materials.    
• Advised UK venture capital fund managers on the promotion of their investment funds.    
• Advised US asset managers on UK AIF financial promotions, the drafting of AIFMR supplements and related conduct matters.   
• Advised multiple clients on the financial promotion of collective investment schemes (non-AIF structures) to UK investors. 

Strategic fund restructurings and wind-ups require careful legal and regulatory coordination across jurisdictions. Our lawyers advise on fund restructuring and winding up processes across all structures and asset classes. They guide managers and investors through complex regulatory, operational, and cross-border considerations, ensuring orderly transitions, compliant dissolution, and robust protection of investor interests. 

• Advised a global investor on the restructuring and recapitalisation of its operating partner’s interests in a commercial property joint venture.   
• Advised Premier Diversified Property Fund in relation to the restructuring of an Isle of Man registered fund.  
• Advised a UK hedge fund manager on the wind down and ultimate liquidation of a Cayman Islands domiciled master-feeder structure.   
• Advised a UK asset manager on the winding up of a UK limited partnership structure. 
• Advised a UK hedge fund manager on the redomicile of its funds to the Channel Islands.   

Drawing on deep sector insight, our lawyers advise institutional investors across all asset classes, guiding pension schemes, sovereign wealth funds, and other major investors through fund commitments, coinvestments, and tailored mandate arrangements. They help clients navigate complex structures, ensuring robust governance, regulatory compliance, and commercially driven outcomes across global investment strategies. 

• Advised pension schemes, sovereign wealth and other institutional investors on fund and segregated mandate investments.    
• Represented a UK pension plan on its transition of £3.5 billion of assets to a new umbrella asset manager including custody, ISDA, GMRA and underlying submanager arrangements.    
• Advised a US State Scheme on multiple closedended fund investments.    
• Acted for a large AngloUS fund of funds manager in connection with its private equity and rollover investments.    
• Advised on the formation of a private equity real estate fund seeded by a sovereign wealth fund.   
• Advised an international investment bank on proprietary pooled fund investments.    
• Advised various international companies and funds on their respective investments in the UK and ME.    
• Advised several Asian governmentlinked companies on their business and real estate acquisitions in the UK.   
• Assisted several Middle Eastern family offices on facilities for portfolios of properties with a value of more than £500 million.   
• Advised a UK family office on its in specie investment into a pharma fund.    
• Represented a UK defined benefit pension scheme on its reallocation of £1.2 billion of assets to multiple international managers and funds together with its LDI arrangements.    
• Advised a top 10 UK pension scheme on multiple private equity and real estate fund investments.    
• Advised a UK pension scheme on the establishment of an assetbacked funding vehicle.    

Our lawyers advise on investment advisory and discretionary management arrangements, including bespoke “funds of one”, for asset managers, institutional investors, and regulated firms. They negotiate and structure tailored mandates and portfolio delegation frameworks, ensuring regulatory compliance and robust governance across complex, multiasset investment strategies. 

• Advise on an ongoing basis an international asset manager on the drafting and negotiation of its discretionary investment agreements, investment advisory agreements, fundofone documentation and AIFM portfolio delegation arrangements.    
• Advised a large UK pension scheme on multiple investment management agreements with various UK and non-UK asset managers, including reviews of related documentation executed by the manager on a power of attorney basis (ISDAs, GMRAs, etc).   
• Advised a Saudi family office on its discretionary investment management agreement with an international asset manager.   
• Advised the partner investment vehicle of a large UK consultancy on their investment into a bespoke structured Delaware vehicle managed by a US asset manager focussing on software and tech company investments.   

Investment managers and AIFMs rely on expert advice when structuring and forming funds across a broad spectrum of asset classes. Our lawyers support clients through complex, multi-jurisdictional projects, guiding the establishment and operation of investment firms and AIFM businesses with commercially focused, sector-specific expertise.  

• Advised on the formation of a Jersey-domiciled engineering-related fund together with its carried interest vehicle and appointed representative arrangements for the investment adviser.  
• Advised on the formation of a Jersey-domiciled closed-ended fund focussing on forestry and farming investments together with its carried interest vehicle and appointed representative arrangements for its investment adviser.   
• Advised a US-registered investment adviser on the drafting of an AIFMD-compliant supplement together with related matters for the promotion of its hedge fund into the UK.   
• Advised a private equity manager on negotiations with its £500m seed investor, and the launch of its credit and real estate opportunities funds.    
• Advised on the formation of a Luxembourgdomiciled tech venture fund.    
• Launched multiple limited partnership coinvestment vehicles for a UK tech investment adviser.    
• Advised on the formation of clubdeal structures for a litigation funder.    
• Advised on the formation of a private equity real estate fund seeded by a sovereign wealth fund.    

Mergers and acquisitions involving regulated firms require careful navigation of authorisation, governance, and compliance requirements. Our lawyers advise buyers and sellers through complex authorisation, governance, and compliance considerations. They deliver commercially focused support across transactions, ensuring regulatory requirements are met while facilitating smooth execution for asset managers, advisers, and other regulated institutions.  

• Advised on buying and selling investment advisory and management businesses.   
• Advised on change of control issues for a wide range of clients, including a major European bank.   
• Advised on the acquisition of the corporate finance team from one of the big 4 accounting firms and managing related employment, pensions, regulatory and other processes.   
• Conducted due diligence and provided regulatory advice on the acquisition of UK AIFMs.   
• Advised on the sell side of the acquisition by a large UK hedge fund manager of a Dubai asset manager and the transition of its hedge funds to the management of the new principal asset manager.   

Our lawyers advise asset managers, institutional investors, and regulated firms on regulatory compliance across the investment management spectrum. They support clients in navigating complex UK and EU regimes, ensuring robust governance, adherence to evolving requirements, and seamless integration of compliance frameworks into daytoday operations. 

• Designed a new contract architecture for a large US bank’s EMEA operations and repapered its many thousands of clients as a result of MiFID II.    
• Acted as lead counsel to a prominent UCITS depositary firm in its implementation of UCITS V and repapered its terms of business with its UK clients.    
• Aggregated the regulatory requirements applicable to a bank in a variety of jurisdictions to produce a single globalstandard set of contractual terms for its counterparties.   
• Advised international financial entities on their new Shariahcompliant product for UK investments.    
• Worked with a NY/London asset manager to implement a DoddFrank & EMIR compliance programme.    
• Advised a large USheadquartered fund manager on compliance with UK and global substantial shareholder threshold reporting obligations.    
• Acted as lead counsel for a USheadquartered global bank’s EMEA businesses in analysing and implementing MiFID II’s order execution, transparency and transaction reporting obligations.    
• Advised listed companies on insider dealing and market abuse controls.   
• Advised clients and assisted them in setting up internal procedures for money laundering.   
• Advised investment platform on NCA reporting of proceeds of crime.   
• Provided commercially focussed regulatory advice including on AIFMD, MiFID and EMIR policies and procedures.    
• Addressed non-compliance with the Financial Services and Markets Act and FCA Rules and responded to FCA enquiries.    
• Conducting a SYSC 8 analysis for an international asset manager on potential back office outsourcing arrangements and preferred custodian arrangements.   
• Advising on regulator notifications following the acquisition of an EU pharma company under AIFMD.   
• Assisting non-US managers to source and obtain appropriate US regulatory advice on investment adviser registration requirements under the 1940 Act and the marketing of private funds to US domiciled investors.   

The structure and formation of “club” deals require experienced lawyers who can bring together multiple investors to carefully negotiate joint arrangements. Our lawyers deliver commercially focused guidance on governance, investment terms, and execution across complex, multiparty transactions, ensuring clarity, alignment, and robust frameworks for collaborative investment strategies.  

• Advised on the formation of clubdeal GP/LP structures across multiple vintage years for a litigation funder.    
• Advised the pension scheme of a large UK bank on a club deal related to the rollover of a large Nordic private equity fund.   
• Advised a UK tech adviser on the formation of multiple GP/LP club deal structures housing select tech company investments.   
• Advised a US State scheme on multiple tech fund club deals.