Allen & Overy today announced the appointment of Tony Sparks as partner in the corporate practice, further strengthening its Equity Capital Markets (ECM) and Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) offering in Australia.
Tony has a considerable track record in high profile corporate and commercial transactions including IPOs and secondary offerings, public and private M&A, hybrid and retail bond issuances, structured products and privatisations.
Grant Fuzi, Managing Partner of Allen & Overy Australia welcomes the appointment: "Tony is recognised as a leader in his field, both by clients and his peers. He will be a tremendous asset to our corporate practice, which has already undertaken a number of significant corporate transactions and has a leading position in most recent M&A league tables. His appointment demonstrates our commitment to be Australia's leading global law firm as we continue to focus on our clients' most important corporate and finance work. His arrival increases the team's critical mass and rounds out our ECM, M&A and private equity capabilities."
Tony's appointment brings Allen & Overy Australia's partnership to 22, with the support of over 155 staff employed since its launch just over 12 months ago.
"This outstanding growth has been fuelled by positive client response to Allen & Overy's offering and a clear focus on leveraging our global and domestic expertise. The corporate practice will continue to service the many opportunities and transactions available in the Australian and Asia-Pacific markets, including Japan, China, India, Korea, Indonesia and Singapore." Grant added.
Over the last 12 months, Allen & Overy has completed deals with an approximate value of AUD40 billion. Recent major M&A/ECM transactions have included advising:
* SABMiller on its AUD9.5 billion takeover bid for Fosters
* Equinox on the AUD7.1 billion Barrick Gold offer
* Liberty Media on the AUD1.9 billion takeover of Austar by FOXTEL
* Qantas/Jetstar on the establishment of Jetstar Japan, a joint venture with Japan Airlines and Mitsubishi Corporation
* Fortescue Metals Group on a USD2.04 billion syndicated loan facility and a 144A unsecured bond offering and on a USD1.5 billion 144A unsecured bond offering
* BT Investment Management Limited's AUD275 million entitlement offer to fund its acquisition of UK based fund manager, JO Hambro Capital Management
* Lynas Corporation Limited's USD325 million equity and debt financing package.
Tony joins Allen & Overy from top-tier Australian law firm Freehills where he has been a partner since 2006, prior to which he worked for an international law firm in London and Tokyo.