Lama Abou Ali
Counsel
BIOGRAPHY

Lama Abou Ali is a Counsel at Meysan and a member of the firm’s Capital Markets practice with significant expertise in capital market transactions in the region. She excels in handling equity and debt issuances, IPOs and listing, delisting, funds’ incorporation, and offering of foreign securities and collective investment schemes. Lama advises listed companies on corporate matters, disclosure obligations, corporate governance and regulatory compliance. She is adept at dealing with the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) investigations.

Additionally, Lama has played a pivotal role in Kuwait’s PPP projects, spearheading legal feasibility studies, crafting comprehensive due diligence reports, and skilfully drafting PPP agreements. She has also provided strategic counsel on the public offering of project companies.

Lama has been instrumental in several major M&A and cross border joint venture transactions for both private and listed local and international companies across diverse sectors including education, telecom, industrial, insurance and luxury retail. Her expertise also extends to advising on data privacy matters in Kuwait and the UAE, UBO compliance, and navigating anti-trust and merger controls and filings.

She also possesses specialized expertise in private wealth management and structuring of high-net-worth individuals’ assets globally. Her experience in this domain encompasses cross-border asset structuring, trusts and estate planning, family office services, international business succession and advisory on wealth preservation.

Before joining Meysan in September 2021 as Senior Associate, Lama held the positions of Senior Associate with a renowned regional law firm, Consultant with a reputable English law firm and was the group legal counsel of the largest bank in Lebanon. Lama has over 13 years of combined experience in private practice and in-house and has contributed her legal expertise in her previous roles to various legal domains, notably banking and finance (conventional and Islamic finance including corporate finance, real estate finance, aircraft finance, trade finance, refinancing/restructuring), energy and infrastructure projects and M&A in the Middle East.

PRACTICES
  • Corporate M&A
  • Private Wealth
Expertise
  • Banking & Finance
  • Projects
  • Capital Markets
  • Rights Issuance
  • Bonds/Sukuks Issuance
  • IPO and Listing
  • Delisting
  • Preferred Shares Issuance
  • Collective Investment Schemes Licensing and Offering
  • Private Equity
  • Public M&As
  • Joint Ventures
  • Corporate Finance
  • Project Finance
  • Syndicated Loans
  • Refinancing/Restructuring
  • PPP
  • Energy
  • Cross-Border Asset Structuring
  • Trusts and Estate Planning
Professional Bodies
  • Beirut Bar Association (since 2013)
EDUCATION
  • Alumna of Harvard Law School’s Executive Education program “Mergers and Acquisitions: Structuring and Leading Deals”, Executive Education program, Harvard Law School, United States, 2019
  • Masters in Domestic and International Business Law, Lebanese University (Filière Francophone de Droit), 2014
  • BA of Laws – Comparative Lebanese and French Laws, Lebanese University (Filière Francophone de Droit), 2010
LANGUAGES
  • Arabic (fluent)
  • English (fluent)
  • French (fluent)
EXPERIENCE

Advised Ahli Bank of Kuwait on Basel 3 compliant Tier II Bonds issuance and offering of KD 50,000,000

Advised Commercial Bank of Kuwait on Basel 3 compliant Tier II Bonds Program of KD 100,000,000 and First Draw Down issuance and offering of KD 25,000,000

Advised Gulf Insurance Group on its rights issue of KD 83,333,333 to existing shareholders

Advised Kuwait International Bank on rights issue of KD 60,000,000

Advised Ahli United Bank on Basel 3 compliant Tier I Sukuk Al Mudaraba of USD 200,000,000

Advised the Sultan Centre Company on the first convertible bonds issuance of KD 15,000,000

Advised AAG, a major family-owned automotive retailer and the largest player in the premium automotive retail industry in the State of Kuwait on the $3 billion private offering and premier market listing of their automotive operation, which represented the region’s first-ever family business offering

Incorporated sharia compliant and conventional funds licensed by the CMA, including money market funds, equity funds, real estate funds, REITs, including the preparation of the funds articles of association and the related private placement documentation and all third party agreements

Advised international funds’ managers and promoters on obtaining marketing licenses from the CMA

Advised Safat Investment Company and CAP Corp, two CMA regulated investment companies on their merger

Advised Ooredoo on a landmark JV and Assets Sale transaction involving its towers in Kuwait for the creation of the largest independent tower company in the MENA region with Zain and TASC, boasting a combined value of 2.2 billion USD

Advised Tiffany NY on the termination of its agency arrangements in Kuwait and its joint venture with the Trafalgar luxury retail group

Advised Universe Group United Holding on the sale of its majority stake in Universe Education Company (Dasman School)

Advised Kuwait Telecommunications Company (STC) on the acquisition of E-Portal Holding Company and its subsidiaries, one of the most prominent companies in telecom and Information Technology sectors in Kuwait

Advised on M&A transactions involving the Bank Audi Group, including among others the incorporation of a bank in Turkey, liquidation of a bank in Monaco and sale of an insurance company in Lebanon

Advised a family business on the acquisition of Hammoud Hospital – University Medical Center S.A.L., the largest university hospital in South Lebanon

Advised Agility on its bid for the Mutlaa City Investment Opportunity (M1) – Industrial Area Project launched by the Public Authority for Housing Welfare

Advised the Ministry of Communications on the Fixed Telecommunications Network Development PPP project for the design, financing, building, operating, maintaining, and transferring Kuwait’s nationwide, high-speed fiber broadband network. The work included carrying out the legal due diligence and feasibility study, advising on all aspects of the PPP Law, Companies Law, competition law, and drafting the RFQ, RFP, PPP Agreement and all project documents and agreements

Designed and proposed legal structures for renewable energy and waste management projects; the work included drafting and negotiating a wide variety of agreements related to waste management and wind energy projects (PPAs, EPC, O&M, technical services, JV and grant agreements, etc) and advised on the first IPP project financing in Lebanon (180 MW wind farms in North of Lebanon)

MEYSAN ADVISES AGILITY ON LANDMARK USD 4.5 BILLION ABU DHABI SECURITIES EXCHANGE DEBUT
MEYSAN ADVISES AGILITY ON LANDMARK USD 4...
May 5, 2024

Abu Dhabi — A team of lawyers from international law firm Meysan recently acted as legal advisor to Agility Public Warehousing Company KSCP (“Agility”) on the successful direct listing on the main market of the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) of shares in subsidiary, Agility Global PLC (“Agility Global”).  Agility Global is a… Read more

Meysan advises Universe Group United Holding Company KSCC on the divestiture of its majority share in Universe Education Company KSCC.
Meysan advises Universe Group United Hol...
February 1, 2024

Meysan is delighted to announce its role as the sole legal advisor to Universe Group United Holding Company KSCC in the pivotal divestiture of its majority share in Universe Education Company KSCC. Universe Education Company KSCC is the prestigious owner and operator of Dasman Bilingual School, a leading educational institution in… Read more

Meysan Partners advises Ooredoo Kuwait in connection with the creation of MENA’s Largest Tower Company Valued at US$2.2 billion
Meysan Partners advises Ooredoo Kuwait i...
December 20, 2023

Meysan Partners is pleased to announce its pivotal role in advising Ooredoo Kuwait on a landmark transaction involving its towers in Kuwait for the creation of the largest independent tower company in the MENA region, boasting a combined value of 2.2 billion USD. Our team at Meysan Partners played a… Read more