Financial Services Arbitration

We advise major international banks and corporates, combining a deep understanding of complex financial products with extensive experience of international arbitrations under all major rules. Our arbitration lawyers work seamlessly with our top-tier Banking and Finance and Capital Markets experts.  

Our experience of banking and finance arbitration covers all major rules and fora, including the LCIA, ICC, SIAC, and HKIAC, as well as the UNCITRAL Rules. We have expertise in arbitrations relating to loan agreements, security arrangements, bonds and complex derivative instruments, as well as disputes arising from government measures in the wake of financial crises. Unusually, we also have extensive experience representing international banks and funds in investment treaty arbitrations.

Our arbitration practice operates from all the leading financial centres and our arbitration lawyers understand local, as well as international, financial markets. Our market leading lawyers have published extensively on adapting arbitration to the needs of financial services users. 

Key highlights of our work include:

• Defeating a EUR200 million claim against Bank of Cyprus, in an arbitration under ICC Rules which arose from the Eurozone crisis.
• Successfully representing a global financial institution in an investment treaty claim against Sri Lanka, for interfering with obligations in an oil hedging agreement between the bank and a state-owned oil company. This is the first case to recognise that financial instruments qualify as an investment for the purposes of these claims.
• Acting for a major fund manager in the defence of an LCIA arbitration brought by a substantial client concerning the management of fixed income funds in excess of USD40 billion. We acted in the LCIA arbitration and in the mediation of the claims to successful settlement.
• Drafting the ISDA Arbitration Guide (2nd edition published in 2018).