She hails from Singapore and brings her regional connections with her
Baker Mackenzie has appointed a new partner to its banking and finance team. Holly Hart joins the firm from Allen and Overy in Singapore, where she spent over a decade. Hart will be based in Sydney and respond to the increased client demand for the firm’s services from there.
Hart is a corporate trust and agency practitioner with specialisation in capital markets and banking and advising corporate trustees and agents. She also has extensive experience creating debt programmes for clients, acting on debt issuances and bond and loan defaults, issuing structured debt instruments, Islamic financing, securitisation, and restructuring.
Baker McKenzie national managing partner Anthony Foley said that the firm’s newest partner had not only “first-class experience” but strategic local and regional connections, having worked with clients across the Asia Pacific region.
“With a rich and varied background, including programme director at the Australian Indigenous Education Foundation and an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management, we are excited about Holly joining us and contributing to the expansion of our thriving banking and finance practice,” Foley said.
Baker McKenzie’s head of banking and finance, Duncan McGrath, also commented on Baker McKenzie’s newest partner. “We're excited to have Holly join the firm’s banking and finance practice, where she will add further depth to our greatly expanded domestic and offshore offering as we continue to respond to increasing client demand,” he said.
Commenting on her own appointment, Hart added that Baker McKenzie was “uniquely placed” to assist international clients who required instruments to be executed in more than one jurisdiction. At the same time, the firm had local legal expertise.
“Given the high-calibre team of lawyers servicing market-leading clients on highly complex matters, I am thrilled to be given this opportunity to grow my practice with this team,” Hart said.
The announcement of Hart’s appointment continues Baker McKenzie’s streak of growth. Only two months ago, Baker McKenzie named Brendan Smith from King and Wood Mallesons as its newest partner in the banking and finance team. The firm also hit a milestone last December 2022 by appointing a woman to lead its Australian office, succeeding Foley by July this year.
