In the last two months, Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co's Corporate team has acted for two special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) on their admissions to the standard listing segment of the UKLA's Official List and to the London Stock Exchange's main market for listed securities.

Vertu Capital Limited, a BVI-incorporated company, has listed with a view to making one or more acquisitions in the financial services sector.

The City of Buenos Aires issued US$500 million 8.95 per cent notes due 2021 internationally pursuant to its US$2.29 billion MTN Programme for repaying and refinancing existing debt of the City.

White & Case LLP has advised Citigroup, as Structuring Adviser, Barclays as Joint Global Coordinator and HSBC and Société Générale as Joint Bookrunners, on the issuance by Total S.A. of its two-tranche €5 billion undated deeply subordinated notes, the largest euro-denominated corporate hybrid bond issue to date.

White & Case LLP has advised BNP Paribas, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank, as Joint Lead Managers and Joint Bookrunners, on the issuance by the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire of US$1 billion 144A/Reg S amortizing bonds due 2028 with an annual coupon of 6.375 percent and a re-offer yield of 6.625 percent.

The bonds will be repaid in three instalments of US$333 million, US$333 million and US$334 million in March 2026, March 2027 and March 2028 respectively. Rothschild acted as financial advisor to the Cote d’Ivoire on this transaction.

Pinsent Masons has advised HSBC and RBS on the financing of Canada Pension Plan Investment Board's (CPPIB) £1.1 billion acquisition of student accommodation company Liberty Living.

The deal, which will see CPPIB acquire over 40 Liberty Living residences across 17 UK university towns and cities, represents the largest European real estate transaction undertaken by CPPIB to date.

The Pinsent Masons team was led by finance partner William Oliver and Frances Mallender with support from across the firm's banking, real estate and tax teams.

Deacons recently acted for the sole sponsor BNP Paribas Securities (Asia) Limited and the underwriters in relation to the global offering and Main Board listing of Suchuang Gas Corporation Limited in Hong Kong.

Suchuang Gas is the dominant piped natural gas operator in Taicang in Jiangsu Province, China.

The company is expected to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 11 March 2015 and raise up to HK$584 million (subject to the over-allotment option).

Schoenherr is assisting Heta Asset Resolution (HETA) in the preparation of the first European resolution pursuant to the European framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions on the basis of Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions (BRRD). The BRRD was implemented in Austria by the Austrian Banking Restructuring and Resolution Act (BaSAG), which became effective only on 1 January 2015.

Vinge has advised Pareto Securities and Dundee Securities in connection with Africa Oil Corp’s USD 125 Million brokered private placement. Africa Oil Corp. is a Canadian oil and gas company with assets in Kenya and Ethiopia as well as Puntland (Somalia) through its 45% equity interest in Horn Petroleum Corporation. Africa Oil Corp. is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and on Nasdaq Stockholm under the symbol "AOI".

Vinge was primarily represented by Jesper Schönbeck.

Bird & Bird has advised the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on its provision of a US$ 30 million loan to MS Pharma Ventures W.L.L. to finance the production of new generic pharmaceutical products.

Locally manufactured medicines are scarce in Jordan and in the wider region of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). EBRD's investment will contribute to the commercialisation of these products and improve access to the latest generation of pharmaceutical products in the region.

Norton Rose Fulbright, has advised South African online trading company GT247.COM on Africa’s first ever EasyEquities product which allows investors to hold Fractional Share Rights over JSE listed shares. Previously only high net worth sophisticated investors had access to the blue chip top 40 stocks, leaving the rest of the market to trade lower priced stocks. The Easy Equities platform now permits users to choose fractional exposure to any JSE share for amounts as small as ZAR10 per transaction.