‘We don’t think about where we came from’ – Clifford Chance’s plan to crack the transatlantic buyout market

Ten years ago, private equity leaders at Clifford Chance began discussing what the firm needed to compete at the top end of the global sponsor market.

‘I remember sitting down with Spencer, Jonny, and others to talk about the importance of being equally strong in all major financial centres, including the US,’ says Neil Barlow, the New York-based partner who co-chairs CC’s private capital steering committee alongside Jonny Myers, global head of PE, and Spencer Baylin, the practice’s London head.

At that point, Barlow was an associate who had already gained experience with two buyout house clients – CVC and 3i. Now, he is driving the firm’s PE growth in the all-important US market.

The inexorable rise of private capital has transformed the market over the last decade, leaving firms scrambling to gain market share with high-growth PE houses and to compete with high-paying US firms building up all-star line-ups on both sides of the Atlantic to service them.

In this highly competitive market, building up in the US is no small goal, but CC is adamant that it can do it and do it differently.

Barlow, Myers and Baylin are confident that they can solve the conundrum of how to become a genuine US contender. They insist that their legacy of private capital innovation across Europe and Asia will enable them to deviate from the ‘big name’ playbook and still keep the US central to the equation.

Building out

All-star partners may not be the focus, but expansion remains a key plank of the strategy. The firm has invested heavily in the team over the last two years, bouncing back from the high-profile exit of former London head Chris Sullivan to Paul Weiss in 2023 with significant growth in the US and London.

In Canary Wharf, the partnership has expanded from 12 to 17 in private equity, with the firm hiring four partners over the period, including well-known PE and M&A partner Bruce Embley – a regular adviser to Permira – from Skadden, and bringing back alumni Patrick Scott from KKR and Annie Lewis from Blackstone as partners. In addition, the firm made up PE and M&A lawyer Craig Grant to partner in its most recent promotions round.

Across the pond, the US PE practice now has 14 partners, more than doubling its New York bench from four to nine over the past two years through a combination of promotions and hires. These include the promotion of Eric Schaffer and the arrivals of Michal Netanyahu from Freshfields, Andrea Gede-Lange from Fried Frank alongside David Schultz and Vince Ferrito from O’Melveny.

The wider private capital platform has also been strengthened through hires across adjacent practices, including White & Case M&A partner Chang-Do Gong, now US M&A co-head, and the return of capital markets partner Gianluca Bacchiocchi from Latham & Watkins.

While the firm has seen some departures in the US – such as the news today that a finance team is joining Sidley – the private equity picture is a positive one.

Myers (pictured right) notes: ‘The growth has been tremendous in the US. We’re proud of that and it will continue to grow.’

‘It’s not just about executing; a lot of people can execute transactions. We look to embed ourselves with our clients’

Baylin stresses that while the team may have been growing, the firm is not in the business of book-buying, or growth for growth’s sake.

‘We have lots of approaches. The people that we have added are a select few,’ he maintains.

‘If there was somebody who stood out, then obviously we’d look, but it is difficult to find people of the right quality and culture. [We want] individuals who are focused on the client, the team and delivering the best people in the firm for that particular project, rather than their personal book and how that works for them.’

Barlow echoes this in New York. ‘It’s been a very thoughtful and consistent buildout. It hasn’t been about going out and beating the drum trying to make a crazy noise.’

The trio are happy to make some noise about the impact of their lateral hiring though. London private equity revenue increased 25% year-on-year, with US revenue also climbing.

Broadening out

Buoying this growth was fee income from a number of mandates for the new joiners, including Blackstone’s landmark $20bn private credit partnership with Legal & General, Permira’s £2.3bn take-private of JTC, and KKR’s acquisition of digital service provider Technone.

Key to CC’s plans for success is looking beyond pure PE buyouts to the broader private capital world to span related areas such as infrastructure and private credit globally.

‘We’re mirroring the multi-asset managers we work with,’ says Myers, pointing to an umbrella ‘private capital practice,’ that encompasses private equity, infrastructure, emerging markets and real estate PE across the US, APAC and EMEA.

The steering committee is responsible for coordinating the strategy and ensuring clients get a consistent service wherever they are working with CC, with Myers and Baylin keen to point out that the goal is to be seen as trusted advisers.

‘It is not just about executing; a lot of people can execute transactions. We look to embed ourselves with our clients,’ says Myers.

Baylin adds: ‘Then at the point in time when your clients pivot, you have anticipated that and are able to support them in a way that is meaningful.’

CC advises 11 of the world’s 12 largest private equity houses and nine of the top 10 global private capital firms by assets under management or capital raised – working with clients including BlackRock, Blackstone, Cinven, CVC, Permira and Vitruvius.

‘We don’t talk about or think about magic circle or where you came from. We think about who we are today’ says Barlow. ‘It’s the global elite model.’

New ground

Baylin says the next stage of growth will be shaped by the diversification of private capital investment.

‘Continuing to gain market share is a primary objective,’ he says, pointing to the need to expand with clients as they broaden their portfolios.

The areas that we will look to grow and supplement will be those which are getting particular focus from clients,’ adds Myers.

This is most visible in the US, which has seen an influx of capital into insurance, sports, media, entertainment, digital infrastructure, healthcare and energy transition, says Baylin.

In a crowded market, competing for these transactions requires significant bench strength across products and jurisdictions.

‘You need to make sure all the constituent parts are there – so when clients are looking to do transactions, we are in their minds, and they know we are ready to look after them,’ Barlow explains.

‘It’s like going into a golf tournament on a Sunday. You want to be relevant in the back nine. You want to be in the mix,’ he adds.

‘We don’t talk about or think about magic circle or where you came from. We think about who we are today. It’s the global elite model’

Last year, a US-led team advised PIMCO funds on a $27bn majority investment to develop a data centre for Meta – the largest deal of its kind globally.

‘And we are doing many others,’ Barlow (pictured right) says of the landmark mandate. ‘We are up on the front line of those transactions.’

Elsewhere, the US team’s clients include the likes of KKR, 6^th Street and BlackRock, and last summer, Barlow advised KKR on its high-profile partnership with Harley Davidson.

These mandates have helped drive a steady rise in the firm’s market position. According to Bloomberg’s January report analysing 2025’s activity, CC placed fifth globally and seventh in the US for private equity, ahead of Gibson Dunn, Ropes & Gray, Sidley Austin and Paul Hastings.

Its Legal 500 rankings, however, lag behind and the firm is currently ranked in Tier 4 for mid-market PE in the US, in contrast to its Tier 1 ranking for premium PE in London.

‘US growth is a continued objective,’ says Myers, citing the fact market share for the firm’s PE practice increased by 7% in the US last year as evidence of intent.

‘Our goal is growth with clients, and when you look at the range of clients we have, there is ample opportunity.’

Culture over cash

While the opportunity may be significant, cracking the US will be critical to the team’s future success.

And with high-end sponsor work dominated by home-grown firms with deep institutional relationships and even deeper pockets, it won’t be easy. The leadership team remain unperturbed by the numbers, though.

Barlow says: ‘There’s a lot of headlines around pay. And quite frankly it’s pretty unsavoury to have all that data bandied around because it’s not representative of the whole market. We’re not focused on that at all.’

‘If you have a star culture, often the overall quality tails off quickly. That isn’t CC’

Baylin (pictured right) instead points to a ‘self-selecting’ process: ‘We attract people by virtue of the growth opportunities and the culture,’ he says.

‘Partners are attracted by the quality of the clients, the teamwork and the mutual support for each other – ensuring that they are empowered to deliver the best for clients, without needing to fight for things internally.’

Baylin insists that emphasising culture is not a soft differentiator, arguing that it is central to performance.

‘Whether US or not, if you have a bit of a star culture, you often find the overall quality tails off quickly. That isn’t Clifford Chance.’

Myers makes the same argument. ‘CC does not forget that we are service providers. Fundamentally, that is our role. Hopefully that is reflected in comp, in fees, and in how we operate. But our metric is what is important to the clients.’

Still, he insists the firm could compete on pay if it needed to. ‘We can compete. That is the simple answer.’

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