Jonathan Choo

Partner

Jonathan is admitted to practise in both England & Wales and Singapore. He has extensive experience advising local and international banks, shipowners, finance leasing companies, shipping trusts, and equity investors on banking and finance transactions, primarily involving maritime and offshore assets. His mandates include loan and lease financings, green and sustainability‑linked financings, debt restructurings, and asset sale and purchase transactions.

Since joining the Firm in 2008 following his call to the Singapore Bar, Jonathan has maintained an active involvement in the maritime community. He is a member of the Singapore Shipping Association (SSA) and served as Singapore’s IMO Goodwill Maritime Ambassador, an appointment made by the International Maritime Organization on the nomination of the Government of Singapore.

Work Highlights

• Acted as transaction counsel to a syndicate of lenders in respect of various secured term loan facilities aggregating over US$700 million, provided to a major containership owner‑operator for the post‑delivery financing of eight dual‑fuel newbuild vessels, including the green financing of a dual-fuelled newbuild vessel which qualifies as an eligible green asset under the Green Loan Principles.
• Acted as transaction counsel to a syndicate of banks in respect of a secured term loan of approximately US$150 million, for the financing of a newbuild maritime asset deployed for offshore wind power marine engineering operations.
• Acted as transaction counsel to a Singapore‑based lender for a JOLCO container box financing, which featured an ISDA‑governed structured swap.
• Acted as transaction counsel to a Singapore‑based bank in the debt restructuring of facilities aggregating over US$300 million owed by an offshore oil and gas group, advising on and structuring the warehousing of a key offshore asset through a bankruptcy‑remote orphan trust structure.