Mark Nuttall

Mark leads Linklaters’ top-tier structured finance practice and is ranked Band 1 by Chambers UK.

He advises on strategy, acquisition & disposals, financing platforms (including whole business securitisations), liability management and regulatory matters. Mark has advised on many of the headline infrastructure and utilities acquisitions, disposals, swap portfolio re-structurings, financings and refinancings in the UK and Europe in recent years.

Mark also has a specific regulatory finance practice, advising some of the largest water and energy companies in the UK, as well as regulated companies across Europe. 

This includes Thames Water on strategic matters (including in respect of equity raises in 2022 and 2023) and the structuring and implementation of the £4.7bn Thames Tideway Project, Yorkshire Water in respect of its 2023 equity raises and financings, and National Grid on its £12bn disposal of Cadent. 

Mark advised Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners in respect of the acquisition, finance and sale of various telecoms assets in Europe and in the financing and preparation for the €7bn sale of VTG.

Mark also advised junior lenders in respect of the restructuring of Punch Taverns and is advising shareholders in respect of Tele Columbus. 

Mark leads Linklaters’ award-winning social finance and pro bono practice, which specialises in social impact bonds, supra-national social financings and innovative ways of raising funds for charities.

Work highlights

Mark has advised on some of the market’s most complex and pioneering transactions, including among others, advising:

• Thames Water: advising on the 2022 and 2023 equity raises, and on ongoing strategic, regulatory and financing advice.
• Yorkshire Water: advising on its 2023 equity raise and ongoing strategic and financing advice.
• VTG AG: advising on the refinancing of its existing debt facilities into a €2.9bn common debt platform including €550m of green debt, significant USPP issuance and liability management project.
• Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners: advising on the restructuring of Tele Columbus.
• Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners: advising in respect of the shareholder financing of VTG AG (together with Omers), and preparation for the €7bn sale of VTG.
• Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners: advising in respect of the acquisition and financing of Altice’s Portuguese fibre and towers assets, including the subsequent sale of the towers to Cellnex; continuing advice in respect Fastfiber.
• National Grid: advising on the £14bn disposal of 61% of their Gas Distribution business (Cadent), including the development of a stapled “MidCo WBS” platform (developed from the ENW financing) to raise debt from the public bond, US private placement and UK financial institution markets.
• Southern Gas Networks plc and Scotland Gas Networks plc (UK): advising on the establishment of a multi-source secured rated “MidCo” debt financing platform (including bank loans, a public bond programme, private placements, institutional term facilities and swaps) and advising on their OpCo £5bn Euro Medium Term Note Programme.
• Thames Water and Yorkshire Water: advising on the establishment of the whole business securitisation platforms (with rating uplifts) for each of these companies, together with continued advice in respect of treasury, regulatory and corporate matters including a £20bn liability management project to remove Cayco entities and a number of complex swap restructurings.
• Thames Water: advising on the 2015 £4.7bn Thames Tideway Project, including delivering a £8.5bn multi-source debt public liability management process (the largest non-sovereign public liability management post-crisis process), rating process, bid evaluation, developing a new regulatory ring-fencing structure, a project financing structure and the public procurement of the process.

Mark studied English and Law at Queens’ College, Cambridge University.