Assignee Legal Counsel, Legal and Tax (Secondment)

About BII

British International Investment is the UK’s development finance institution, owned by the UK Government. With a mission to solve the biggest global development challenges, we aim to create a virtuous circle of investment and impact. Your contribution will be essential. 

It won’t be easy: we do the hardest work in the most complex markets. Be prepared to test your skills, get creative and say your piece as you take on high-profile work as part of a diverse team of exceptionally smart, passionate people. 

In return, you can take your career to all-new places in a culture that rewards curiosity and collaboration, and balances high performance with wellbeing.

BII at a glance

Over 75 years supporting sustainable business growth in developing and emerging markets

More than £8.8 billion in net assests

1,400+ businesses invested in

950,000 workers in the businesses we support 

650+ people in our diverse global team

3 key development objectives: Productive | Sustainable | Inclusive

Team and role overview

• Location: Nairobi and Lagos
• Duration: 12 months (3 & 9)
• The BII Legal team is divided into groups of lawyers supporting different types of investment (Direct Equity, Funds, Project Finance and Debt), plus corporate and tax support.
• The Debt legal team advises on debt to be provided to corporates and financial institutions and risk participations, principally in the context of trade and supply chain finance. The team also supports investment teams on innovative and impactful, direct and intermediated, debt instruments as well as BII’s growing work in concessional financing.
• This assignment will be to BII’s Nairobi and Lagos offices and reporting to the Deputy Chief Legal Officer – Debt with a “dotted line” to the Head of Office, Kenya during the assignee’s stay in Nairobi and a “dotted line” to the Head of Office, Nigeria during the assignee’s stay in Lagos.

Purpose

• The BII Legal team is divided into groups of lawyers supporting different types of investment (Direct Equity, Funds, Project Finance and Debt), plus corporate and tax support.
• The Debt legal team advises on debt to be provided to corporates and financial institutions and risk participations, principally in the context of trade and supply chain finance. The team also supports investment teams on innovative and impactful, direct and intermediated, debt instruments as well as BII’s growing work in concessional financing.

Responsibilities

• Advising BII on all stages of its debt investments, including structuring, negotiation, execution, syndication and mobilisation, and portfolio management.
• Working with investment teams to ensure that transactions are pursued in a timely manner and legal risks are identified and appropriately managed.
• Project-managing broader elements of transactions (such as taxation, E&S and business integrity matters) to ensure that relevant input is obtained and BII’s core requirements (including BII’s Policy on Responsible Investing) are met.
• Managing external counsel.
• Interpreting due diligence reports and other advice from external counsel on legal risks and applying them to the commercial context to solve problems.
• Explaining legal issues and risks concisely to investment professionals and internal decision-making bodies where necessary.
• Reviewing documentation prepared by external counsel (and in some instances drafting documentation) for a broad range of debt transactions.
• Building and sharing know-how and best practice, including training and precedents.
• Assisting with miscellaneous matters, such as non-disclosure agreements and engagement letters.
• At least 25% allocation to Nairobi and Lagos office responsibilities, including:
• providing or arranging periodic formal and ad hoc formal training on debt legal matters to the Nairobi and Lagos-based investment and impact teams
• developing and deepening relationships with law firms in Nairobi and Lagos
• participating in events/speaking on panels in Nairobi and Lagos and respective regions as appropriate
• engaging with legal colleagues at other DFIs/lenders/co-investment partners in Nairobi and Lagos
• Sharing knowledge gained in Nairobi/Lagos both from Nairobi/Lagos and on return to London via formal and ad hoc training

The candidate

Background, skills, aptitude

The successful candidate will:

• be a Legal Counsel at BII in the Debt Legal team;
• have at least 12 months’ service at BII at the point of applying for the Secondment and have no active disciplinary cases;
• Be meeting expectations in their role and have manager approval to apply to this position.
• have a commercial mind-set and be constantly seeking solutions;
• be able to assess risks and make well-reasoned, independent and transparent decisions under time pressure;
• be able to explain legal issues and risks concisely to investment professionals, recommend appropriate courses of action and resolve problems;
• be a self-starter, able to work independently (without the back-up traditionally associated with large companies, particularly law firms), be ‘hands-on’ and keen to get involved in all areas of the business when required;
• have very good interpersonal skills able to work effectively across cultures, with occasional travel;
• understand that working for a development organisation such as BII requires a trade-off between rewarding work and remuneration;
• be motivated by BII’s development mission and demonstrate some commitment to development or social goals;
• demonstrate an intellectual interest in in the concept of impact investing and the role concessional/blended finance can play in the delivery of impact.

Technical skills:

• A lawyer qualified in England with at least five years’ post-qualification experience in the banking practice of an international law firm; a top tier law firm; the legal department of an international financial; development finance institution; and/or a top tier domestic financial institution.
• Experience working for large international corporates or financial institutions making debt investments such as corporate lending (essential) and preferably financial institutions finance (including an understanding of capital adequacy/Tier II requirements); trade finance (including borrowing base and receivables financings); risk participation structures (first loss/funded/unfunded); and structured finance (e.g. securitisations and pooled bond issuances).
• Experience reviewing, negotiating and drafting standard LMA English law facility agreements, common terms agreements and intercreditor agreements and a solid understanding of market standard risk allocation for cross-border transactions.
• An understanding of the risk tolerances and expectations of international lenders making cross border loans around the world.
• Familiarity with sustainable financing as well as “know your customer”, anti-money laundering and anti-bribery and corruption policies preferable.
• Candidates should be strongly motivated by BII’s development mission and ideally demonstrate some commitment to development or social goals through previous executive or non-executive activity.

Our cultural values

We look for team members who aspire, as we do, to work at our best and to be:

• Impact-led, commercially rigorous
• Tenacious in the face of challenges
• Collaborative and caring

British International Investment is committed to diversity and inclusion and welcomes all applicants regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation or educational background.