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Martin Bartlam

Partner
Global Co-Chair, FinTech
About

Martin specialises in structured credit and asset management acting for many of the world's leading private equity credit funds, banks and corporations, on complex funding structures, portfolio sales, securitization, derivative products and technology investment. He has over 25 years' experience working for and advising funds and financial institutions.

Leading a team of over 700 lawyers in more than 90 offices worldwide. The group provides advice on tax efficient structuring, vehicle formation and management, regulatory issues, vehicle funding and lending, asset acquisition and disposal including NPLs and consumer assets, capital markets listings and reporting, and asset management including portfolio repackaging and trading.

Martin is recognised as one of the world's leading FinTech lawyers (ranked in Legal 500) and advises on technology solutions for emerging and traditional funding structures. He is at the forefront of alternative investment strategies and products including applying new techniques through platform structures, digitalization and fund driven investment.

Professional QualificationsSolicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales

EXPERIENCE

Transactions in 2018/2019 include:

Structured Credit Funding and Securitization

  • Waterfall Capital Investors as investor and funder through its European funds platform to a number of specialist funding businesses
  • Viola Capital, a leading Israeli private equity technology focussed credit fund, as investor and funder to UK SME funding platforms
  • Ares Capital Management on funding and transfer of various portfolios
  • Shawbrook Bank on the portfolio sales and funding of UK real estate and mortgage lending platform businesses in the UK
  • Future Finance on the warehouse financing of its student funding platform
  • NatWest Markets as portfolio hedge provider to specialist consumer finance and mortgage funds through its RBS Automated Treasury Solutions platform
  • Lloyds Bank on the portfolio sale of a large structured finance asset portfolio to a European private bank group
  • RCI Financial Services Limited on its auto finance securitisation programme and regulation of its UK operations
  • Bibby Invoice Finance on its BFS Funding I Limited securitization to add two additional mezzanine tranches

International Capital Markets

  • Morgan Stanley & Co. International PLC on its Oder and Weser Capital Limited repackaging programmes in relation to various series issuances repackaging equity and fund assets to meet investor requirements including certificates listed on the Irish Stock Exchange
  • Rothesay Life PLC, Partnership Life Assurance Company Limited, Standard Chartered Bank Korea Limited as trustee for DB Private and Real Estate Investment Trust 14 and Man Global Private Markets (UK) Limited on Extra Holdings secured notes funding programme secured against a portfolio of motorway service stations
  • Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A., Banco Santander, S.A., HSBC Bank PLC and Société Générale, as to English and Spanish law, on the issue of EUR 600,000,000 (1.250 per cent) and Eligible Green Projects Notes by ADIF- ALTA VELOCIDAD under its €6,000,000,000 EMTN Programme
  • Places for People as issuer on the establishment of an Australian MTN programme and its first issuance thereunder
  • BlueZest Mortgages and Loans Ltd (BlueZest), the UK specialist mortgage lender, on all legal aspects of its establishment and issues under its £1.5 billion programme for the issuance of secured retail bonds

Fintech

  • Various investor groups in relation to subscription arrangements and structuring of one of the worlds' largest ICO to date
  • Working with leading technology providers to deliver tokenized and blockchain projects including Tokeny, Capchain, and Luther Systems
  • Working with the worlds' leading digital and crypto technology businesses in establishing Global Digital Finance bringing together key industry players such as Messari, R3, Circle, Diginex to develop a global industry-led approach to the regulatory framework of the crypto industry
  • Security Token Issuers such as iYield on its property backed token structure and a number of stable coin offering entities in relation to tokens backed by a variety of assets including, commodities, securities, currencies, fund assets and other real assets
  • Mash Group a leading fintech credit provider on its EUR 50 million equity round offering and combined STO
  • Archax on the establishment of an institutional grade exchange for trading digital assets
  • A European Crypto Exchange and ICO issuer on compliance issues relating to its exchange operations
Education
  • University of London, Kings College, LLM (Hons), 1986
  • College of Law of England and Wales, Lancaster Gate, Law Society Finals, 1987

Pro Bono

Martin brings to legal structuring a rare combination of experience as a structured finance investment banker, financial modeller and leading financing lawyer.

Martin has been at the forefront of developing legal structures for many years and has and is currently working on several first of type transactions. Noteable firsts include:

  • first international securitisation out of Poland and first securitisation to receive PCS label in Poland (Santander Consumer Bank S.A.)
  • first project bond to receive benefit of UK government credit wrap under IUK scheme (Mersey Gateway Project)
  • first project bond post financial crisis (Leeds County Council);
  • first PCS label auto securitisation in the UK (FGA - A-best 8);
  • first project finance securitisation in Yemen (Pemberley Finance);
  • first credit derivatives product company in Europe (Deutsche Bank);
  • first credit card principal financing in the UK (Compucredit);
  • first mortgage securitisation in Kazakhstan (BTA Group);
  • first ever PFI project bond to be completed in the UK (RBC).

Prior Experience

Previous experience includes being head of structured products at Calyon (formerly part of Credit Lyonnais and now Credit Agricole in London), where Martin was responsible for originating and structuring project bonds, high yield bonds and securitisation products and as a member of the debt structuring team of Greenwich Natwest (now RBS) where he was responsible for structuring solutions and modelling regulatory capital impacts for bond and debt products.

Martin previously headed finance teams at three international law firms and acted for one as their London Office Managing Partner. Martin originally trained at and spent seven years with a 'magic circle' firm in London and Hong Kong.

Thought leadership

Martin brings to legal structuring a rare combination of experience as a structured finance investment banker, financial modeller and leading financing lawyer.

Martin has been at the forefront of developing legal structures for many years and has worked on several first of type transactions. Noteable firsts include:

  • first international securitisation out of Poland and first securitisation to receive PCS label in Poland (Santander Consumer Bank S.A.)
  • first project bond to receive benefit of UK government credit wrap under IUK scheme (Mersey Gateway Project)
  • first project bond post financial crisis (Leeds County Council);
  • first PCS label auto securitisation in the UK (FGA - A-best 8);
  • first project finance securitisation in Yemen (Pemberley Finance);
  • first credit derivatives product company in Europe (Deutsche Bank);
  • first credit card principal financing in the UK (Compucredit);
  • first mortgage securitisation in Kazakhstan (BTA Group);
  • first ever PFI project bond to be completed in the UK (RBC).

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