Alexei Franks

Alexei principally advises financial sponsors, financial investors and funds on the tax aspects of their transactions with a particular focus on advising sovereign and other institutional investors on investing in UK and European assets. He has specialist knowledge of real estate transactions and M&A work.

Alexei frequently collaborates with the firm’s market-leading lawyers in other practice areas, particularly the firm’s corporate lawyers. He also advises on complex standalone tax issues.

In addition, Alexei has extensive experience on structuring complex downstream private equity deals and was able to successfully combine his technical expertise in this area with a practical, commercial approach whilst on secondment to the tax team at a global investment bank.

Work highlights

• iCON Infrastructure on the acquisition of Alliance Medical Group from Life Healthcare for an enterprise value of £910m
• OPT, USS and BRUC Energy on the sale of 49% of BRUC’s 1,066MW portfolio of operational and under construction solar photovoltaic generation assets (with additional potential for hybridisation) to Inter Infrastructure Capital, an infrastructure investment fund of Interogo Holding
• Cityhold Office Partnership and Nuveen on the sale of 12-14 New Fetter Lane to UBS for £135m
• City Developments on the acquisition of the St Katharine’s Docks development for £395m
• GIC and Greystar on the acquisition of the Student Roost student accommodation business from Brookfield
• GIC on the acquisition of the Sani/Ikos hotel business
• Ontario Teachers Pension Plan on the acquisition of 25% of SSE’s electricity transmission business for £1.5bn, on the sale of the Memora Group to Grupo Catalana Occidente for €600m and on the establishment of a wind farm development collaboration with Corio committed to invest up to US$1bn in wind farm development capital
• InfraVia on the formation of a joint venture with Liberty Global and Telefonica with the aim of investing approximately £4.5bn to build a new fibre network in the UK
• Cadillac Fairview on a joint venture with Stanhope and St John’s College Oxford to develop Oxford North, a £700m new global innovation district near Oxford, and on a joint venture with Stanhope to acquire 70 Gracechurch Street in the City of London for approximately £300m
• Australian Super the acquisition of 50% of British Land’s stake in the Canada Water Masterplan for £290m and formation of a joint venture with British Land
• TIAA (Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association) on its disposal of a stake in the EUR5bn “CHOP” pan-European office platform
• I Squared Capital on the tax structuring and implementation of their US$1.5bn acquisition of TIP trailer services
• TDR Capital on its disposal of the International Car Wash Group

Alexei studied classics at University College, University of Oxford.

He speaks English and conversational Italian and Spanish.