About

Mark Loynd took up the position of General Counsel at Giordano International in 2013 and has since expanded his responsibilities to include Company Secretary, Head of Overseas Market Development and Group HR Director. His leadership and insights into the business also led to his appointment to the Board of Directors of Giordano’s listed entity in 2017. Notable achievements during his time at Giordano include completing the acquisition of Giordano’s Middle Eastern franchise business, achieving success in a landmark tenancy dispute involving one of Giordano’s largest flagship stores, as well as expanding Giordano’s footprint into a series of emerging markets during the pandemic.

Of the franchisee acquisition, Loynd took over the project in 2013 and navigated the final completion of the deal, which had become further complicated by extensive changes in local legislation across the GCC, until closing the deal in early 2015. Loynd also developed and executed a strategy for a tenancy dispute involving one of Giordano’s largest flagship stores, ultimately securing a favourable outcome for the Group shortly before the pandemic.

As part of his work as Head of Overseas Market Development, Loynd’s role was also significant. He personally negotiated and secured franchises in Mauritius, Kenya, Algeria, Egypt and India during the pandemic to secure the first mover advantage in these north African and south Asian emerging markets.

When discussing the characteristics that mark out the very best in-house counsel, Loynd simply states that the key is to ‘utilise [our] unique understanding of the business, identifying material issues and formulating optimal resolution strategies in a way that external counsel simply could not’. He also stresses the importance of being able to effectively connect the layers of corporate structures – from the Chairman of the Board, to external counsel, to business clients, and to other company employees – as well as keeping up with the demands of the present and being aware that legal transactions per se must be updated, especially with reference to changes in the legal technology landscape and developments in the realms of ESG.

Loynd’s determination to hold his legal and compliance functions to the highest professional standards while fully integrating them into the business setting means he stands out as among the most talented legal professionals in Hong Kong. He was called to the Hong Kong Bar in 2007 and worked on both criminal and civil cases.

Loynd’s in-house career started with Softbank Investments in Hong Kong, before becoming GC of Zheng He Financial Holdings and now, GC of Giordano International.