Eric Flaye

Overview

Eric Flaye is Counsel and Head of the London office of Conyers.

He has a broad corporate practice with particular expertise and interest in private investment funds, mergers and acquisitions, and joint ventures. He is also a key member of the Firm’s growing Fintech (blockchain & digital assets) practice.

Eric moved offshore in 2015 with 8 years’ of onshore transactional and funds experience (first, with Herbert Smith Freehills’ Tier 1 M&A/PE team in Sydney, then later with Sullivan & Cromwell in London). He relocated back to London in early 2019.

Experience

Experience Highlights

Advising on numerous (confidential) private fund formations (in particular, PE/VC funds and hedge funds), fund restructurings and related regulatory matters
Advising on the US$2 billion IPO of Despegar on the New York Stock Exchange
Advising on the IPO of LSC Lithium on the Toronto Stock Exchange
Advising Mercuria Energy Group on a number of its private investment activities
Advising Goldman Sachs’ merchant banking division on various M&A transactions and related joint ventures and management incentive plans
Advising Archer Capital on various M&A transactions as well as fund formation and restructuring matters
Advising BHP Billiton, Rhône Capital, JP Morgan, Barclays, BAML, Ares Capital, KKR, Pacific Equity Partners, Elders, Boral, Leighton Holdings, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board and Public Sector Pension Investment Board on various separate M&A and joint venture matters
Advising Macquarie Bank, UBS, JP Morgan, Babcock & Brown, NAB, CBA, BNY Mellon and Eksportfinans on various separate securitisation, derivatives and structured finance matters

Qualifications

Professional Background

M&A/PE lawyer at Sullivan & Cromwell, London
Client secondments with an asset management firm and an energy/resources company
M&A/PE lawyer at Herbert Smith Freehills, Sydney

Education

Harvard Business School, Private Equity & Venture Capital program, 2016
University of Oxford, Masters in Law and Finance (Distinction; first in class in finance; full scholarship), 2011
Australian Securitisation Forum, Diploma of Financial Services, 2008
Macquarie University (Australia), BBA/LLB (Hons), 2007
University of Utrecht (Netherlands), Student Exchange program, 2006
7 university awards/prizes (including Remedies, Trade Practices, China Trade and Investment, Economics, and Finance)

Bar Admissions

Bermuda, Registered Associate
British Virgin Islands, Solicitor
England & Wales, Solicitor (not currently practising)
New South Wales (Australia), Solicitor (not currently practising)

Awards & Accolades

Recognised in the 2021 edition of Who's Who Legal (private funds)
Recognised as a ‘Rising Star’ in the 2020 edition of Legal 500 United Kingdom (offshore firms in London)
Recognised as a ‘Next Generation Lawyer’ in the 2019 edition of Legal 500 Caribbean (corporate and commercial)

Publications

Corporate Digest: Notable Deals and Transactions – Winter 2020

Corporate Digest: Notable Deals and Transactions – Autumn 2019

Corporate Digest: Notable Deals and Transactions - Spring 2019

Global IPO Report – July 2018

2017 Global Corporate Year in Review, January 2018

‘Shadow directorship risk for lenders in informal workout scenarios’ (2009) 3 JASSA: The Finsia Journal of Applied Finance 32

Area(s) of Expertise

Legal Services

Blockchain and Digital Assets
British Virgin Islands Investment Funds
Capital Markets
Cayman Islands Investment Funds
Corporate
Finance
Investment Funds
Mergers & Acquisitions
Private Equity & Venture Capital

Featured Content

This digest highlights some of the significant legal work carried out by Conyers’ lawyers since the start of 2020 for our corporate clients in markets around the globe.