The Firm Analyst

By Adnan Shafi

This Firm Analyst is a podcast hosted by Adnan Shafi, an incoming Trainee Solicitor at Foot Anstey LLP. The goal of the podcast is to demystify the world of commercial law and help aspiring and curren... more

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FAQs about The Firm Analyst:

How many episodes does The Firm Analyst have?

The podcast currently has 63 episodes available.

The Firm Analyst episodes:

June 30, 2024S8EP2: The Age of $20m Partner Pay Packages; Is the £100m+ City of London RE Market Dead?; and Light at the End of the Tunnel for PE
Welcome back to this episode of The Firm Analyst! In this episode, we discussed:
$20m partner pay packages and what they tell us about the direction the UK's commercial law sector is taking in terms of pay;

how a deal drought in the City of London's £100m+ property market may affect real estate behemoths of the legal sector; and

a 14% increase in deal volume in PE across the globe as central banks begin to hint towards rate cuts.

Thanks for tuning in once again and I hope you enjoy the episode!
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45min
June 23, 2024S8EP1: Market Temperature Check: Systemic Risk in PE? And What Election Year Means for Clients
I am super excited to be back with this new episode of The Firm Analyst and I hope that you are all ready to engage with some of the topics we will be discussing today. These include:
the PRA ordering a review of Barclay's leveraged finance business and what the PRA's findings may mean for the market;

a review how elections have impacted currency, debt and equity capital markets in the last few months;

an in depth review of how the election year will affect the derivatives, project finance and tax sectors for law firms.
I hope you will all enjoy the episode!
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53min
April 22, 2024 S7EP4: 48 Laws of Restructuring & Insolvency
Welcome back everyone to The Firm Analyst! I was really excited to release this episode, where we will be discussing how international law applies to restructuring & insolvency contexts.

In particular, we looked at how the UK has become a popular restructuring hub and the topic of "forum shopping". We also take a brief look at Ch.11 proceedings in the US and EU insolvency proceedings as well as the application of the UNCITRAL Model Law to larger global restructurings.
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48min
April 14, 2024S7EP3: FCA Calls Out "Finfluencers"; A&O and Others Reappointed to Santander Panel and Trowers to Open Office in Singapore
Welcome back to The Firm Analyst! This is probably one of the most detailed podcasts I've done, so I hope you all enjoy it. We discussed the following topics:
(2:33) the FCA releasing Finalised Guidance discussing financial promotions in the context of social media;

(19:26) Santander's appointment of A&O and a range of firms to its legal panel, including a segment on how panels work; and

(38:30) Trowers & Hamlins' decision to open an office in Singapore, including a discussion of how law firms operate internationally.
Link to access on all platforms: https://linktr.ee/thefirmanalyst
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1h 1min
April 07, 2024S7EP2: Thames Water Going Under Water? Why Gold Hit a Recent High, and the 'Great Maturity Wall'
Welcome back everyone to this episode of The Firm Analyst! In this episode, we discussed:
Thames Water's financial struggles and its parent company's recent default on its debt;

Why gold is a systemically important asset and why it was able to reach a new high last week; and

The 'Great Maturity Wall' and how firms like Aston Martin likely avoided an existential debt crisis through one of the debt capital markets' most relied on tools: the 'roll over'.

I hope you enjoy this episode and I look forward to seeing you all next week God willing!
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51min
March 25, 2024 S7EP1: The 21st Century Law Firm: Navigating AI and Culture (Slaughter and May Innovation Competition)
In this episode, I tackled the following question as part of my submission for Slaughter and May's Innovation Competition:

What are the cultural challenges with integrating generative AI into a law firm? What are the best ways for Slaughter and May to approach these challenges to maximise the successful integration of generative AI across the firm?
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56min
March 11, 2024 S6EP4: Sorry...Who's SONIA? Dissecting A Facility Agreement
In this episode, we looked briefly at some of the main stories and deals happening this week, including Nationwide's bid for Virgin Money.

Following this, we took a deep dive into the world of banking and finance by dissecting a standard facility agreement and looking at its terms. This is a great opportunity to see whether finance law is for you.

I hope you enjoy this episode!

Link to access on all platforms: https://linktr.ee/thefirmanalyst
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56min
March 03, 2024S5EP3: M&S Taps Dentons in Planning Dispute, M&A Disputes to Increase, Says BRG and How Mischon is Teaming Up with NVIDIA to Help Start-ups
This was a really analytical episode and I hope that you are as excited to listen as I am excited to publish this episode. We covered the following stories:
Marks & Spencer, instructing Dentons, comes out victorious in a High Court appeal against a decision from the Secretary of State rejecting the retailer's planning application to redevelop a key store in Oxford Street.
The Berkley Research Group released its fifth annual M&A Disputes Report, which revealed that market participants expect disputes in this area to increase in number. We take a look at how this could impact the legal sector.
Mischon has been working with NVIDIA in assisting tech startups level up. The $2 trillion computing giant is working closely with Mischon to deliver its 'Inception' programme, which is designed to connect tech startups with tech resource, funding and legal support.

I hope you enjoy the podcast!
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54min
February 25, 2024 S6EP2: "Everything Went to Plan"- A Chat with an Islamic Finance Solicitor, Aziz Deen
In this episode, we were graced with the presence of Aziz Deen: an Islamic finance and commercial property solicitor at Foot Anstey LLP. After recounting some of the main stories of the week, I spoke to Aziz about his journey, the lifecycle of a deal and how he uses commercial awareness on a daily basis.

If you're pressed for time, feel free to skip to the 10-minute mark where the interview with Aziz officially begins.

I hope you enjoy this episode. Please be sure to share it with your friends!

Link to access on all platforms: https://linktr.ee/thefirmanalyst
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43min
February 19, 2024S6EP1: Currys Rejects Takeover Bid, UK Falls into Recession and TUI to Delist from London Stock Exchange
Welcome back everyone! It seems unreal saying it but we have successfully reached our sixth season of The Firm Analyst. Thank you so much for your support thus far.

In this episode, we discussed:
Currys PLC rejecting a takeover bid from activist hedge fund Elliot Investment Management and what this means for the company.

The UK officially falling into a recession and how this will affect the property, M&A and legal markets.
The motivations behind and implications of TUI's vote to delist itself from the LSE.
I hope you enjoy the podcast and the new intro!
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44min

FAQs about The Firm Analyst:

How many episodes does The Firm Analyst have?

The podcast currently has 63 episodes available.