Risk Capital Advisors (RCA) has hired former Eversheds Sutherland’s the Netherlands senior partner, Rob Faasen, to lead its European expansion as it opens an office in Amsterdam. 

And in New York, another veteran partner, Morgan Lewis & Bockius restructuring specialist Tim DeSieno, has joined litigation funder Omni Bridgeway to help it grow its global distressed debt business.

London-based M&A insurance specialist RCA put its expansion down to a growing demand for advice on transactional risks – including those from force majeure; the Netherlands being a major European insurance hub, as well as a centre for civil law class actions and related litigation funding. 

With the pandemic affecting European, as well as international M&A markets, insurers – and those that work with them – have switched to actively managing such risks in what is a specialist area of practice. 

Faasen will advise the firm’s managers and staff on the legal aspects of warranties and indemnities, tax liabilities and contingent risks on both the buy and sell side of the market. 

He brings with him more than 30 years of M&A experience, first with his own firm Faasen & Partners, and then at Eversheds Sutherland. His firm joined Eversheds Sutherland’s European network in 2008 before fully integrating in 2018. Faasen left earlier this year.

Rick Glover, RCA’s managing director, said: “M&A insurance is a thriving and innovative tool to minimise risk and smooth the road for M&A transactions. The Netherlands is a growth market for M&A insurance given that some M&A advisors still do not consider M&A insurance solutions for their clients.

“As sellers and buyers face difficult market conditions, stability and risk mitigation are of critical importance. We are delighted to appoint someone of Rob’s calibre, leadership qualities and corporate M&A legal experience.”

Meanwhile, in New York, DeSieno has assumed the role of global director of distressed debt at Omni.

He will develop the funder’s global distressed debt business, seen as one strand of its future growth; such products have been attractive to private equity and hedge funds, although not without controversy, being labelled as ‘vulture funds’ by some, with litigation being an important part of their business strategy. 

As a senior investment manager, he will identify and manage distress-related litigation funding opportunities in emerging markets with a focus on Latin America, key sectors include energy, infrastructure, logistics, retail, entertainment and hospitality.

Like Faasen, DeSieno has more than three decades' experience as a lawyer, including, most recently, as a partner at Morgan Lewis, with his CV including junk bond workouts in the 1980s/1990s, the Asian currency crisis in 1998, the global financial crisis in 2008 and pandemic-related instructions. 

Andrew Saker, CEO of Omni, said: “Investing in distressed debt is an important part of our strategy,” and called DeSieno “a highly respected leader in his field.”

Saker added: “His expertise complements our insolvency, enforcement, and asset tracing teams, and it is particularly relevant in the current economic climate.” 

Having known Saker for close to two decades, DeSieno said he was confident Omni’s strength in litigation funding globally would be “an excellent platform for creating a distressed debt business and a Latin America-focused litigation finance portfolio”.