Africa-focused firm ASAFO & CO. has further strengthened its projects practice with the hire of Andrew Thomas and Winston Bell-Gam to join the firm’s London office as partners. Following March’s addition of a special projects team in Paris led by Cendrine Delivré, and the addition of an office in Washington DC in April, led by projects partner Jude Kearney, the London office hire is further evidence of the firm’s continuous progress in the market and its ability to attract top talent.
Andrew Thomas is joining ASAFO & CO. London along with Winston Bell-Gam from Holman Fenwick Willan (HFW). With thirty years of experience under his belt, Andrew Thomas began his career at Linklaters and later went on to head the UK practices of different US law firms in London, including Chadbourne and Parke, Akin Gump and Gibson Dunn. He later founded the Africa-focused practice at Fasken Martineau and headed the banking practice at Hunton & Williams before becoming the head of project finance at HFW.
Andrew Thomas’ practice focuses on project finance with an emphasis on power, pipeline, infrastructure, healthcare and transportation sectors. He has extensive experience advising developers, financial and developmental finance institutions, corporate boards and governments about high-value infrastructure projects. His addition to ASAFO & CO.’s international projects team brings the firm closer to reaching its critical mass in Europe and on the African continent and will significantly boost the projects practice across the continent.
Winston Bell-Gam has over 15 years of experience and his career includes working at White & Case, Ashurst, Winston & Strawn, and in-house at the East African Development Bank. His practice focuses on the acquisition, financing, and project development of projects in power, infrastructure, healthcare, transportation and insurance sectors in Africa.
The additions of Andrew Thomas and Winston Bell-Gam brings ASAFO’s total partner headcount to 50. Their added capabilities will be key in driving project finance matters that rely on English law, across Africa.
“I am very pleased to join ASAFO & CO. and believe its unique Africa-focus really sets it apart from any other international law firm. The firm already has very strong projects practice and I look forward to contributing to its development. Having focused on Africa for more than 10 years, moving to ASAFO & CO. made a lot of sense for my practice and also in terms of the global interest in Africa, which remains high,” Andrew Thomas said.
Pascal Agboyibor, Managing Partner, ASAFO & CO. said, “We are thrilled to have Andrew and Winston join us. After expanding our projects practice in Paris in March and opening a Washington DC office led by a projects partner in April, the addition of two partners of their calibre really gives us the traction to further expand our Africa-focused projects practice. We also share the same commitment to the continent and firmly believe that ASAFO & CO. can make a positive contribution to the decisions and projects that are impacting economies, industrialization and sustainable growth across Africa.”
About ASAFO & CO.
ASAFO & CO. is an international law firm established to deliver a unique and integrated offering of world-class legal services dedicated to Africa-related business. With experienced teams on the ground in key hubs across the African continent and a unique Pan-African footprint, ASAFO & CO. has positioned itself as Africa’s leading international law firm.
With over 180 lawyers and legal professionals in eight offices in Abidjan, Casablanca, Johannesburg, London, Mombasa, Nairobi, Paris and Washington DC, the team works on complex and high impact transactions, financings and dispute resolution matters in a broad range of sectors, including energy (conventional and renewable), infrastructure, natural resources (mining, oil and gas), telecommunications, agribusiness, healthcare, as well as banking and financial services. ASAFO & CO. regularly acts for governments, states, private investors, developers, commercial and development banks, development financial institutions and investment funds.
