Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has worked in emerging markets since the firm's inception nearly 80 years ago, and so has a long track record in Africa, China, Eastern Europe, Russia, India, Pakistan, Latin America and the Middle East. The firm remains one of the leading advisers to sovereign wealth funds on a host of finance projects and restructurings. It also acts for state-owned entities, public and private corporations, private equity and leveraged buyout firms, and institutional and private investors, as well as banks and financial advisers. Its work spans project finance, capital markets, privatisations, M&A deals, private equity investments, and international arbitration and litigation. Among the standout practitioners are Tihir Sarkar and Nallini Puri, who handle cross-border M&A; Polina Lyadnova, who recently handled a $3.8bn liability management exercise for an Indian mining company; capital markets specialist Sebastian Sperber; and private equity partner Michael Preston.