Sam Mahboubian

Sam specialises in syndicated lending and international banking transactions across the credit spectrum, focusing on corporate and event-driven lending, public and private acquisition financings, pre- and post-IPO financings, and corporate leveraged finance transactions, with wide ranging experience acting for both borrowers and lenders in domestic and international transactions, and advising corporates, arrangers and sponsors. His broad sector experience spans financial services, mining, energy, consumer, healthcare, retail, housebuilding, telecommunications, business services and construction.

Sam also has a breadth of experience in acting on a variety of restructurings and insolvencies, including advising Steinhoff International on its distressed debt and subsequent restructuring and six months spent on-site advising PwC as Joint Administrators of Lehman Brothers during its administration. Sam's also completed a client secondment at Citi's Leveraged Finance desk in 2012, gaining significant commercial experience within the banking sector.

Sam has been ranked in Mergerlinks' list of the Top Ten Financing Lawyers in EMEA, ranking first in 2024.

Work highlights

• Citi and SocGen: advising on a £5.6bn acquisition facility and separate take-out financing for Schneider Electric's UK public bid for Aveva.
• Barratt Developments plc: advising on the financing aspects of Barratt’s acquisition of Redrow plc, including a £900m bridge facility to 'backstop' Barratt’s £700m revolving credit facility, and the subsequent amendment and restatement of that revolving credit facility.
• The Arrangers: advising on a £330m acquisition bridge facility for a member of the IWG plc Group to acquire Instant Group, and the related amendment and restatement of IWG plc's £950m RCF to ringfence certain members of its group prior to a proposed spin out.
• Helios Towers plc: advising on Group-level senior secured term and revolving credit facilities totalling over US$690m and acquisition facilities for the US$495m class 1 acquisition of Omantel’s tower assets in Oman.
• Alinda Capital Partners: advising on the acquisition financing of its £209m public takeover of Energy Assets Group plc.
• Anglo American PLC: advising on a US$100m sustainability-linked loan with IFC, a US$2bn revolving credit bridge facility and a syndicated US$4.5bn revolving credit facility.
• Nestlé S.A.: advising in connection with a US$4bn bridge-to-bond acquisition facility to acquire certain licensing rights from Starbucks.
• The Arrangers: advising in respect of a SEK3.6bn sustainability-linked secured pre-IPO multicurrency revolving credit facility for Oatly Group.
• The Mandated Lead Arrangers: advising on the US$115,000,000 acquisition financing for the Watches of Switzerland group's acquisition of Roberto Coin, Inc.
• CRH plc: advising on a €6.5bn bridge loan facilities in connection with its acquisition of certain assets from the Holcim-Lafarge group.

Further work highlights include:

• The Arrangers: advising on the financing of The Restaurant Group plc's £357m class 1 acquisition of the Wagamama restaurant group.
• The Arrangers: advising in respect of a £400m acquisition financing for DS Smith plc to finance its acquisition of 80% of Indevco Management Resources, Inc.
• Nestlé S.A.: advising in connection with two multicurrency revolving credit and swingline facilities totalling over €11.0bn.
• The Lenders: advising in respect of term and revolving facilities aggregating US$2.3bn for Koninklijke Philips N.V., including what is believed to be the first sustainability-linked corporate RCF in the European market.
• Steinhoff International Holdings N.V. and subsidiaries: advising in connection with the restructuring of over €4bn of indebtedness.
• The Arrangers: advising in connection with UBM plc's US$365m acquisition facility to acquire Allworld Exhibitions.
• Barclays Bank plc: advising in connection with an up to £100m pre-IPO financing for the acquisition of shares in The Hut Group by then-existing shareholders.
• The Arranger: advising in respect of a €250m ECP 'backstop' swingline facility for América Móvil B.V., guaranteed by América Móvil, S.A.B. de C.V.
• Mondi plc: advising in connection with its €750 multicurrency revolving credit facility.

• National Grid plc and affiliates: advising on bilateral and syndicated revolving credit facilities totalling £7.9bn.

Sam has mentored students from the Eastside Young Leaders' Academy, an East London supplementary school that provides educational and leadership opportunities for young Black and ethnic minority people. He is also a sponsor of the Firm's Race Action Plan.

Sam holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice (LPC) from the College of Law and a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP (GDL). For his undergraduate degree, Sam obtained a Bachelor of Science in Politics (1st class) from Bristol University.