Sector developments and company hires

HKMC inks infrastructure MoUs
The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation (HKMC) has signed a memorandum of understanding on an infrastructure loans framework with 14 partner banks. The MoUs set out the principal terms for potential infrastructure loan cooperation between the HKMC and the partner banks on both primary participation and secondary sale bases, including the loan selection criteria, mode of participation and engagement process.

The partner banks are: ANZ, Bank of China (Hong Kong), BNP Paribas, China Construction Bank (Asia), Citi, DBS Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia), JPMorgan (Asia Pacific), Mizuho Bank, NAB, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation, Banco Santander, Societe Generale and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation. The MoUs could assist the partner banks in identifying infrastructure-related loan assets for the HKMC and would further the mandates of the HKMC’s infrastructure financing and securitisation business to fill the infrastructure financing market gaps, while consolidating Hong Kong’s position as an infrastructure financing hub.

In other news…

EMEA
Jonathan Laredo has joined Slate Asset Management as md. He was previously ceo of Yew Grove REIT, having been cio at Solent Capital and cio Europe at Aladdin Capital Management, among other securitisation-related roles.

North America
Dechert has appointed global finance partner Stewart McQueen as the new head of its CMBS practice, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. McQueen has been with the firm since 2005 and his expertise resides in securitisation transactions, complex real estate finance and capital markets. Under his leadership, Dechert hopes to further expand its global finance and real estate business.