Abuhimed Alsheikh Alhagbani Law Firm (AS&H), the Saudi-based law firm, has said that it has played a major role in helping the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the Kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, on the completion of its capital increase in Emaar, the Economic City (EEC) – the master developer of King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) – through the conversion $753 million debt to equity.

In a statement, AS&H said the transaction was done in co-operation with Clifford Chance, one of the world’s pre-eminent law firms with significant depth and range of resources across five continents.

Following this transaction, PIF’s stake in EEC has grown to 25% after it took over debt in the company previously held by the Ministry of Finance that was then converted to ordinary shares, the statement said.

The deal will also make PIF the largest shareholder in EEC, which is affiliated to top Dubai developer Emaar Real Estate Development Company.

The AS&H team in Riyadh was jointly led by Partners Mansoor Alhagbani and Omar Rashid with Partner Yasser Al-Hussain advising on certain aspects of the transaction. The team also included Christian Both (Counsel), Abdulkhaliq ElShayyal (Senior Associate) and Noura Abdulrahman and Haya Al-Rowaita (both Associates).

AS&H and Clifford Chance have a strong track record of advising on some of the largest, most innovative and most complex deals in the Middle East.

Together, the firms recently advised on Saudi Electricity Company’s $45 billion shari’a compliant subordinated perpetual financial equity-like instrument as part of Saudi Arabia’s wider electricity reforms; the $200 million acquisition of three flour mills in Saudi Arabia as part of Saudi Arabia’s privatisation drive; and National Commercial Bank on its merger with Samba Financial Group, thus creating the largest bank in Saudi Arabia.