In-house Sales and Trading Lawyer - Fixed Income, German Qualified (Senior Vice President)
About Jefferies
Jefferies is a leading global investment banking and capital markets firm, providing insights, expertise and execution to investors, companies and governments for more than 60 years. With deep sector expertise and a full range of investment banking, equities, fixed income, asset management and wealth management capabilities, Jefferies serves clients across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Jefferies Group LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE: JEF).
Role Overview
We are seeking an experienced, commercially minded lawyer to join the Sales & Trading Legal team, supporting Jefferies' EMEA and Asia Fixed Income businesses, with a particular focus on the German Namenspapier market.
The ideal candidate will be a fixed income lawyer with broad debt capital markets and private placement experience, together with strong expertise in German market debt products. Dual qualification in Germany and England & Wales is strongly preferred.
The successful candidate will provide legal support to Jefferies' Global Structured Solutions business in connection with the structuring, arrangement and placement of German-law and cross-border debt products, while also advising on wider fixed income, financing, trading and regulatory matters across the platform.
This is a front-office-facing role involving close interaction with bankers, structuring, compliance, risk and other control functions. It offers the opportunity to work on a broad range of debt capital markets and financing transactions within a dynamic and growing fixed income franchise.
Relevant Experience
Candidates should have experience in some, though not necessarily all, of the following areas:
- Namensschuldverschreibungen (NSVs)
- Schuldscheindarlehen (SSDs)
- Genussscheine and other hybrid capital instruments
- EMTN programme issuances
- Standalone debt capital markets transactions
- Structured and bespoke debt issuances
- Cross-border financing and capital markets transactions involving German issuers and investors
- Private placements and institutional debt offerings
Key Responsibilities
Transactional Support:
- Advise transaction teams on legal, regulatory and execution risks.
- Draft, review and negotiate transaction documentation.
- Support the establishment, update and utilisation of issuance programmes.
- Advise on offering documentation, placement arrangements and distribution matters.
- Coordinate with external counsel, clients and internal stakeholders.
- Support transaction due diligence and disclosure processes.
Regulatory and Advisory Work:
- Advise on applicable UK, EU and German legal and regulatory requirements.
- Support new product development and strategic business initiatives.
- Advise on MiFID II, market abuse, conduct and investor protection matters.
- Assist with regulatory change and implementation projects.
- Provide legal support to compliance, risk and other control functions.
- Advise on broader fixed income trading, financing and structuring activities.
Skills and Experience:
- Qualified lawyer with at least 4 years' PQE, gained in private practice or in-house.
- Dual qualification in Germany and England & Wales is strongly preferred. Candidates qualified in Germany, England & Wales or another Commonwealth jurisdiction will also be considered.
- Fluency in German, written and spoken, is desirable.
- Strong experience in the German Namenspapier market and related debt capital markets products.
- Sound understanding of German capital markets documentation and market practice.
- Knowledge of relevant UK, EU and German regulatory frameworks.
- Excellent drafting, negotiation and stakeholder management skills.
- Ability to manage multiple matters and competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Personal Attributes
The successful candidate will:
- Exercise sound judgement and identify key legal and execution risks.
- Be comfortable working directly with senior and junior stakeholders across the business.
- Manage a broad and varied workload effectively.
- Negotiate confidently with external counterparties and advisers.
- Deliver concise, practical and commercially focused advice
- Collaborate effectively across business lines, jurisdictions and control functions.
The Legal team sits on the trading floor and operates in a fast-paced environment, requiring strong technical skills, commercial judgement and the ability to respond quickly to business needs.
Diversity and Inclusion
At Jefferies, we believe diversity drives creativity, innovation and better outcomes for our clients. We are committed to fostering an inclusive culture that values different perspectives and provides opportunities for all employees to thrive.
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