Jamie Thomas

Jamie Thomas is a partner in the Singapore office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He is a Co-Chair of the firm’s Finance Practice Group and heads the banking, finance and restructuring practices in Gibson Dunn’s Asian offices.

With more than 25 years’ experience in the banking, finance and restructuring sectors in Asia-Pacific and Europe, Jamie is recognized as a leading finance lawyer in all major legal directories, including Chambers, The Legal 500 and IFLR1000.

He is a trusted advisor to top-tier private equity sponsors and funds, advising them on complex cross-border leveraged finance transactions, as well as fund financings including subscription-based, NAV and hybrid facilities, and regularly advises alternative capital providers on cross-border special situations financings and direct lending transactions. In addition, Jamie is the pre-eminent advisor to sponsors and companies across Asia on reserves-based and renewable energy financings for the energy and commodity sectors, as well as on their transition to lower carbon options. He also has significant experience in project finance, asset-backed financing, hedges and derivatives, as well as digital assets lending and various cutting edge aspects of decentralised finance (DeFi).

On the restructuring front, Jamie is one of the most experienced restructuring legal practitioners in the market. He heads Gibson Dunn’s award winning restructuring team and is ranked as a Leading Individual in Restructuring and Insolvency -  Singapore by The Legal 500 and was named in the Global Restructuring Review’s (GRR) “Singapore Names to Know” list.

Jamie is the leading choice by debtors, companies and families when faced with bet-the-house restructuring situations, and also has extensive experience advising on creditor led debt restructurings (including complex out-of-court workouts and in-court restructurings) and the implementation of such strategies in Asia. His experience covers the Asia-Pacific region, including Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, China, India, Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Philippines and Australia.

Jamie sits on various finance and restructuring committees in Asia. He is Chair of the Indonesian Steering Committee of the Asia Pacific Loan Market Association (APLMA) and sits on their Singapore and India Documentation Committees. He is also a member of the Turnaround Management Association (TMA) and the Law Society of England and Wales.

Recent Recognition

Jamie is consistently recognized by leading independent legal directories:

• Ranked by Chambers Asia-Pacific and Chambers Global as a leading lawyer in Banking and Finance for Singapore and Indonesia. He is praised for being “able to find a win-win solution on complex deals and is available 24/7”, a “strategic, commercial thinker” and “an excellent lawyer who can bridge every gap and find solutions”, as well as having “a better understanding of local and regional banking regulatory issues than the vast majority of finance lawyers in South-East Asia” by Chambers Asia-Pacific based on client feedback and peer review.
• Recognized by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific as a Leading Individual in Banking and Finance and Restructuring & Insolvency for Singapore. Jamie is also recommended for his work in Indonesia and in Energy for Singapore. He is praised for his “excellent tactical mind, high level of client commitment and an impressive ability to grasp complicated, nuanced matters very quickly” and is considered “a veteran with vast knowledge, experience, and a passion for finance, restructuring, and energy-related matters that really is second to none. He is one of the few veterans left in the market in this region who can come up with extremely unique and complex structures and is a master at catering the law to the client’s needs” by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific based on client feedback and peer review.
• Recognized by IFLR1000 as a highly regarded individual in Banking and Capital Markets (Debt) for Singapore.
• Recognized by Best Lawyers for his expertise in Banking and Finance and Insolvency and Reorganization Law for Singapore.
• Named in Asia Business Law Journal's Singapore A-List, which identifies the top 100 lawyers in Singapore based on an extensive survey of leading in-house counsel and partners at international law firms.
• Recognized as a leading lawyer in Expert Guides’ Banking, Finance and Transactional guide.
• Named in the list of Singapore Names to Know by Global Restructuring Review.

Recent Awards

• 2024: “Energy Transition Deal of the Year - Indonesia” and "Telecom Deal of the Year - Indonesia" by The Asset at its Triple A Sustainable Infrastructure Awards.
• 2024: “APAC Deal of the Year” by the Energy Council at its Asia Pacific Awards.
• 2024: "Private Equity Deal of the Year" by IFLR at its Asia-Pacific Awards.
• 2024: "Private Equity Deal of the Year" by Law.com International at its Asia Legal Awards.
• 2024: "Best Private Equity Deal, Asia" by FinanceAsia at its Achievement Awards.
• 2023: “Indonesian Transition Energy Refinancing Deal of the Year” by The Asset at its Triple A Sustainable Infrastructure Awards.
• 2023: "Law Firm of the Year for Restructuring and Insolvency" by The Legal 500 at its Southeast Asia Awards.
• 2022: “Indonesian Transition Energy Deal of the Year” by The Asset at its Triple A Sustainable Infrastructure Awards.
• 2022: “APAC Deal of the Year” by the Energy Council at its Asia Pacific Awards.
• 2021: “Debt Market Deal of the Year (Premium)” by Asian Legal Business at its Indonesia Law Awards.
• 2021: “Finance Deal of the Year: Insolvency and Restructuring” by The Asian Lawyer at its Asia Legal Awards.
• 2021: Finalist for “Restructuring Team of the Year” and “Restructuring Deal of the Year” by IFLR at its Asia-Pacific Awards.
• 2021: Finalist for “Debt Market Deal of the Year (Premium)” by Asian Legal Business at its SE Asia Law Awards.
• 2020: “Restructuring Deal of the Year” by IFLR at its Asia-Pacific Awards.
• 2020: Finalist for “Restructuring Team of the Year” by IFLR at its Asia-Pacific Awards.
• 2019: “Debt Market Deal of the Year” by Asian Legal Business at its SE Asia Law Awards; “Asia Pacific Upstream Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by IJGlobal at its Asia Pacific Awards; “Indonesian Oil and Gas Deal of the Year” by The Asset at its Triple A Asia Infrastructure Awards.
• 2018: “Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by IJGlobal at its Asia Pacific Awards.
• 2017: “APAC Deal of the Year” by the Oil & Gas Council at its Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Awards.
• 2016: “Indonesian Project Finance Deal of the Year” by The Asset at its Asia Infrastructure Awards.

Recent Speaking Engagements and Publications

• Author, “5 Key Takeaways, APLMA Private Credit Conference 2023 in Singapore”, June 2023.
• Co-presenter, “Launch of English Law APLMA Facilities Agreement Template for Indonesia Offshore Loans”, October 2021. 
• Co-author, “The End is Near: LIBOR Cessation Dates Formally Announced,” March 2021.
• Co-author, “Practical Advice for Company Directors facing a Liquidity Crunch,” International Financial Law Review, June 2020.
• Co-author, “Debt Buybacks: Opportunities and Considerations for Private Equity Investors in Asia Pacific,” May 2020.
• Co-author, “COVID-19: Key Issues for Private Credit and Special Situation Investors in Asia-Pacific,” April 2020.
• Co-author, “Coronavirus: Time for Companies to have a Financing Check-up whilst the Black Swan is Circling,” Asian Legal Business, March 2020.
• Co-author, “Coronavirus: Time for Private Equity to have a Financing Check-up,” March 2020.
• Co-presenter, “Alternative capital, Term Loan B and Unitranche financings,” client seminars 2017 and 2018.
• Co-presenting to over 50 companies, financial institutions and alternative capital providers in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Indonesia and Singapore on alternative capital and debt reprofiling, 2016 - 2017.
• Co-presenting on Iran Sanctions to various financial institutions and oil and gas companies in Indonesia and Singapore, November 2015 and September 2016.

Prior to him and his team joining Gibson Dunn in January 2015, Jamie was a partner at White & Case, and before that, he spent seven years at Clifford Chance.

Jamie gained his degree specializing in oil and petrochemical science at Manchester University in 1994 and he gained his law qualifications (CPE in 1995 and LPC in 1996) from the College of Law with commendation.

Capabilities

• Finance
• Business Restructuring and Reorganization
• Capital Markets
• Derivatives
• Energy and Infrastructure
• Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG)
• Financial Institutions
• Infrastructure
• Oil and Gas
• Power and Renewables
• Private Equity
• Projects

Credentials

Education:

• University of Law - Guildford - 1996 Legal Practice Course
• University of Law - Guildford - 1995 Common Professional Exam in Law
• University of Manchester - 1994 Bachelor of Science

Admissions:

• England & Wales - Solicitor