Karen Lam

Karen advises clients on derivatives and structured finance, with a focus on financial markets infrastructure, particularly in developing innovative solutions for structures in mainland China and advising on market access programmes. She is a core member of the Linklaters team that advises on derivatives clearing and OTC derivatives regulatory reforms. 

Karen has developed strong relationships with a number of major Chinese banks and securities houses as they develop repackagings, structured notes, OTC derivatives and other structured finance products.

Karen regularly advises arrangers in Asia on repackaging, asset-backed financing, covered bond and securitisation transactions over a wide range of underlying assets. She has extensive experience in Residential Mortgage-backed Securities (RMBS), Commercial Mortgage-backed Securities (CMBS), whole business, auto loan and credit card securitisations.

Work highlights

Karen has advised on many of the market’s most innovative structured finance transactions. These include advising:

• Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited on the establishment of OTC Clear, Hong Kong’s first OTC derivatives clearing house, and ongoing advice
• Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited on the China-Hong Kong Stock Connect and Bond Connect platforms between Mainland China and Hong Kong
• Kookmin Bank on the establishment of its covered bond programme and the first issuance under it. This was the first statutory covered bond programme by a Korean bank in the Korean market
• on Trade Maps, the first multi-bank programme for the securitisation of global trade finance assets

Karen also advises banks and buy-side entities on their futures, cash equities, structured note and OTC derivative documentation, including to facilitate the provision of products and services linked to shares traded through Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Connect.