Olaniwun Ajayi LP

The firm: Olaniwun Ajayi is a leading commercial law firm with broad financial, corporate, energy and natural resources and regulatory advisory practice areas. Olaniwun Ajayi is a pan-African practice with a presence in key African cities and lawyers who are qualified in multiple jurisdictions, including Nigeria, the United Kingdom and the State of New York.

Over the years, the firm has acted for some of the biggest corporations in Africa and across the globe, equipping the firm with a good mix of local knowledge and international expertise. As a result of this, the firm’s clients are constantly provided with bespoke services expected of a top commercial law firm which provides value for money while keeping abreast of the dynamic pace of the business world. The fulcrum of the firm’s strategy is the assiduous protection of the firm’s clients’ interests, employing sound judgement and innovative tools for mitigating and, where possible, eliminating the risks involved in the various aspects of their businesses.

Olaniwun Ajayi LP is a pacesetter: strategically positioned to provide support on all matters related to commercial enterprises, from start to finish. Its history, deep roots and familiarity with the business environment afford the firm a uniquely different perspective to issues and has continued to shape the way it approaches and innovates around its clients’ challenges.

Areas of practice: With over 50 years’ experience in helping organisations, governments and individuals achieve their goals, the firm has developed expertise in sophisticated commercial transactions, a fact illustrated by its involvement in some of the largest and most complex transactions across many sectors of the Nigerian economy. This has been exemplified by the work of Oluseye Opasanya, SAN in the receivership of Arik Air Limited – the largest and most complex receivership in the West African aviation sector, cutting across multiple jurisdictions.

In the banking and finance space, the firm remains one of Nigeria’s foremost commercial law firms in the country and on the continent, routinely advising domestic and international commercial lenders, DFIs, governments and supranationals, as well as some of the largest corporations on various market-defining deals. Recently, the firm advised a syndicate of lenders in connection with the financing and restructuring of a US$600m multicurrency facility granted to Emerging Markets Telecommunications Services Limited (Etisalat Nigeria).

The firm has been highly regarded for its expertise in capital markets transactions, advising on the issue of the most successful (in terms of subscription) non-sovereign and non-supranational Eurobond issuance in sub-Saharan Africa. The firm is currently advising an indigenous oil and gas company on its Eurobond issuance programme.

As a leader in the Nigerian power industry, where it is widely recognised as a pioneer, the firm advised on the landmark 459MW Azura-Edo IPP and more recently, the proposed development of a 540MW gas-fired IPP in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.

In terms of contentious work, the dispute resolution practice of the firm is highly regarded as the ‘go-to firm’ for very complex disputes and criminal investigations and representing clients in complex finance, capital market, power and oil- and gas-related disputes. The firm also has a growing arbitration practice representing clients both in domestic and international arbitrations.

As a result of the firm’s expertise, it has become the leading law firm when companies are thinking of embarking on a new and revolutionary idea, product or process, and for complex and sophisticated commercial transactions as well as contentious work.