Sarah El Serafy

Sarah El Serafy is Of Counsel at Al Tamimi & Company, based in Dubai International Financial Centre, focusing on Banking and Finance Law. She has over 13 years’ experience advising banking clients on various legal and regulatory matters.

Her expertise covers project finance, debt capital markets, structured products, banks’ mergers and acquisitions, and general banking and finance. She has assisted banking clients in complex corporate restructuring activities, bank mergers, bond offerings, leveraged buyouts, syndicated finance transactions, securitisation of loan portfolios, investment business start-ups, introducing structured products to the local market, and insurance and re-insurance matters.

Sarah’s particular expertise is banking matters, particularly drafting and negotiating loan agreements and the relevant security documentation on behalf of lenders and borrowers. She has on many occasions assisted banks in negotiations with their clients in project finance, syndicated finance and other types of bank facilities, and has built a strong reputation with the relevant authorities and regulators for achieving security creation and perfection.

Her recent experience includes advising the UAE Central Bank on consumer protection regulation and standards; advising the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange on membership and service agreements; advising a Hong Kong-based exchange on trading in VCCs for UAE clients and the regulatory framework; assisting the Qatar Transport Authority with drafting railway law; advising a GCC central bank on drafting insurance regulations; assisting the Egyptian cabinet with amendments to the Penal Code and the Banking Law; advising Qatar National Bank on the acquisition of a Turkish bank; and advising HSBC on the domiciliation of HSBC Jersey to the DIFC.

She also has extensive experience in banking litigation matters and debt recovery issues.

Sarah was awarded “Leading Lawyer” in the 21st/2011 Edition of the IFLR1000 – The Guide to the World’s Leading Financial Law Firms, and was noted as having “a high profile in finance” in the 22nd/2012 Edition. She holds an LLB from the Law School, English Department, Cairo University (2005) and was admitted to the Egyptian Bar Association in 2008. She speaks Arabic and English.