Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma is a Partner in the Mumbai office of Phoenix Legal, where he advises extensively on banking and finance matters and has been part of several first-of-their-kind transactions in the Indian market. His primary practice area is Banking and Finance Law.

His practice spans the full spectrum of financing work, including private credit (both performing and special situations), acquisition finance, real estate finance, project finance, securitisation, debenture issuances, structured finance and ECB facilities.

Prior to joining the firm, he was a Partner at Luthra & Luthra and Bharucha & Partners, and previously held roles as Senior Associate at AZB & Partners and Associate at ASAR – Al Ruwayeh & Partners, a Tier-1 Kuwaiti law firm. He also served as Vice President at IDFC Limited, bringing an in-house perspective that sharpens his commercial judgment on deals.

His work has been widely recognised: he was named a Rising Star by ALB India (2022), a Recommended Lawyer for Banking and Finance by Legal 500, one of Legal Era's 40 Under 40 – Private Practice Rising Stars, and Young In-House Counsel of the Year.

His recent experience includes advising Edelweiss Group on restructuring debts of and subscribing to secured, rated and listed non-convertible debentures aggregating to INR 4.75 billion (with a green shoe option of INR 1.75 billion) issued by Kohinoor CTNL Infrastructure Company Private Limited; advising the Asian Development Bank on subscription to secured and listed non-convertible debentures aggregating to INR 10 billion issued by a micro finance institution; and advising entities belonging to Edelweiss Group on the issuance of non-principle protected debentures of INR 4 billion (USD 62.5 million) to an affiliate of a foreign bank.

He has advised several financial institutions, including micro-finance lenders, housing finance companies, banks and small finance banks — such as Dvara Kshetriya Gramin Financial Services Private Limited, Godrej Capital, Vivriti Asset Management, Spandana Sphoorty Financial Limited, Savasti Microfinance Private Limited, Ummeed Housing Finance Limited, IndusInd Bank, State Bank of India, Bank of India, Ananya Finance For Inclusive Growth Private Limited, Ashv Finance Limited, Fincare Small Finance Bank Limited and Sarva — on securitisation (including time tranching and replenishment structures) and direct assignment transactions.

He has also advised several non-banking financial companies, including Satya Microfin, Sarvagram Fincare Private Limited, Asirvad Micro Finance Limited, Save Microfinance Private Limited and Ananya Finance For Inclusive Growth Private Limited, on the issuance of listed and unlisted debentures. He has advised foreign lenders such as BANK IM BISTUM ESSEN eG and the Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation Limited on their external commercial borrowings in India.

Other matters include assisting IDFC Limited in setting up a Euro Medium Term Notes Programme on the Singapore Stock Exchange and in availing external commercial borrowings from multi-lateral organisations such as the International Finance Corporation and Asian Development Bank, commercial banks such as Nord LB, and government agencies such as the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. He also advised Reliance Commercial Finance Limited on the acquisition of the loan portfolio of LoanTap Credit Products Private Limited, and Authum Investment & Infrastructure Limited on the acquisition of non-performing loans from JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Company Limited and the restructuring of such loans.

He advised S.M.I.L.E Microfinance Limited on the transfer of its standard and non-standard assets to Northern Arc Capital Limited; advised Visakha Container Terminal Pvt. Ltd., part of the JM Baxi Group, on borrowing of around INR 800 crores from IFC and three Indian lenders for setting up a port terminal; advised ASF Group, a real estate group specialising in developing SEZs, on the issuance of senior and listed debentures to a Foreign Portfolio Investor managed by Oak Tree and a junior series of debentures to an Indian NBFC; and advised Capital Small Finance Bank on issuing Capital Tier II Bonds of INR 500 million.