Raza is one of the founding partners of Lexium, and the head of the firm’s banking and finance and aviation practices. He has consistently been ranked as a leading lawyer of Pakistan by the Chambers and Partners legal directory.
His core areas of expertise are project and asset finance (particularly in the energy, aviation, telecommunication and entertainment sectors), capital facilities, restructuring of loans, syndicated lending, as well as general commercial banking. He has experience in representing both international and local lenders as well as borrowers.
Raza also has wide ranging international and local experience in the aviation sector. He advises buyers, sellers, operators and lenders on all types of cross-border aviation matters across various jurisdictions. He is highly experienced in drafting, negotiating and executing aircraft purchase agreements, aircraft leasing agreements and aircraft financing documents and on advising upon various transaction structures. He is particularly active in the business jets and helicopters market. His clients include brokers, financiers, operators and high net worth individuals.
Raza’s extensive professional experience also encompasses mergers and acquisitions, real estate, employment, intellectual property and high net worth private clients. He has previously worked with two of the leading firms in Pakistan as well as with the former Supervision Committee for the Expansion of Abu Dhabi International Airport in connection with several of its infrastructure projects relating to the expansion of airports in the United Arab Emirates.
Outside law, Raza regularly appears as a legal analyst and commentator on several leading television channels in Pakistan, and has also written for leading national newspapers on various aspects of public international law and international diplomacy. He has lectured on public international law, business law and contract law at leading academic institutions in Pakistan as well as the Punjab Judicial Academy.
Raza has served as a Member-Central, South and South East Asia for the London School of Economics Alumni Association Regional Liaison Sub-Committee. He was previously the founding London School of Economics Group Leader for Lahore. In 2019, the London School of Economics awarded the Outstanding Alumni Volunteer Award to Raza in recognition of his long standing services to his alma mater and its global alumni network.
In his free time, Raza enjoys traveling, reading and watching films .
Some of Raza’s work highlights include:
Banking and Finance
- Acting as counsel to the Packages Group in an international project finance loan of US$ 25 million from the International Finance Corporation.
- Acting as counsel to Guarantco Ltd. in a cross-border contingent capital facility of US$ 50 million to Infrazamin Pakistan Limited.
- Acting as counsel to Hyundai Nishat Motor (Private) Limited Pakistan in a Musharaka Islamic finance facility of PKR 5.6 billion (US$ 43 million approx.) from Meezan Bank Limited for setting up a Hyundai car assembly plant in Pakistan.
- Acting as counsel to US International Development Finance Corporation (previously OPIC) in an international project finance transaction of US$ 7 million to Kashf Foundation, a leading microfinance institution of Pakistan.
- Acting as counsel to US International Development Finance Corporation (previously OPIC) in an international project finance transaction of US$ 9 million to Cinepax a leading chain of cinemas in Pakistan.
- Acting as counsel to Guarantco for provision of credit support by way of a PKR 3.12 billion cross-border guarantee to Byco Oil Pakistan Limited for its Islamic Sukuk
- Acting as counsel to Guarantco for provision of credit support by way of a PKR 966 million cross-border guarantee to Mobilink for its Islamic Sukuk bonds for its 3G license.
- Acting as counsel to US International Development Finance Corporation (previously OPIC)in an international project finance transaction of US$ 3.5 million to TPL Trakker, a leading transportation cargo security business in Pakistan.
Aviation
- Acting as special international counsel to a consortium of purchasers in the cross-border purchase of 14 pre-owned Chinese registered AW helicopters.
- Acting as counsel to the purchaser in the cross border purchase and dry lease in Pakistan of a brand new Gulfstream G280 aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to the seller in the cross border sale and delivery in the United Arab Emirates of a pre-owned Gulfstream G200 Pakistan registered aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to the seller in the cross-border sale of a pre-owned Gulfstream G150 Pakistan registered aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to the purchaser in the cross border purchase and dry lease in Pakistan of a pre-owned Gulfstream G200 Austrian registered aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to the purchaser in the cross border purchase and dry lease in Pakistan of a brand new Gulfstream G150 aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to a GCC lender in the cross-border refinancing of a pre-owned Gulfstream G150 Pakistan registered aircraft
- Acting as counsel to the purchaser in the cross-border purchase in Pakistan of a pre-owned Beechcraft King Air South African registered aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to the seller in the cross-border sale to a GCC entity of a pre-owned Cessna Citation Bravo Pakistan registered aircraft.
- Acting as counsel to a leading Kuwaiti aviation lease and finance company in an unconsummated cross-border lease of Airbus A-320 aircraft to Pakistan International Airlines.
Mergers & Acquisitions/Corporate
- Acting as counsel to the sponsors in their buy-back of 5.49% shares in MCB Bank from Bugis Investments (Mauritius) Pte Ltd.
- Acting as counsel to IGI Investments (Private) Limited in its series seed funding in the Mahaana wealth start-up.
- Acting as ongoing counsel to Afiniti Inc and its Pakistan subsidiaries on a range of matters including employment, commercial leases and Pakistan regulatory compliances.
- Acting as counsel to Jomo Technologies (Private) Limited in structuring the employee shareholding transfer scheme.
- Acting as counsel to Nishat Agriculture Farming (Private) Limited in its cross-border joint venture with SUTAS SUT URUNLERI to set up a dairy products manufacturing and distribution business in Pakistan.
- Acting as counsel to the Pakistani subsidiary of Hassad Foods Qatar in a US$ 2 million acquisition, and then its eventual sale, of a rice processing facility in Pakistan.
- Acting as counsel to a leading Pakistani petroleum company in the due diligence for acquisition of several upstream petroleum assets in Pakistan.
- Acting as counsel to Wateen Telecom in the merger of its WiMax broadband business in Pakistan.
