Mr. Oakes is a member of Davis Polk & Wardwell’s Corporate Department, resident in the London office and head of the European FIG practice. He represents European companies and investment banks in securities offerings and other financings in the international public and private markets. He has extensive experience in advising non-U.S. companies on initial public offerings of equity and high-yield debt securities and offerings of investment-grade debt securities. He also advises clients on various aspects of mergers and acquisitions and all aspects of compliance with U.S. securities regulation.

Mr. Oakes concentrates in securities offerings by financial institutions, in particular non-U.S. insurance companies. He represented the underwriters, led by Goldman Sachs, in connection with the NYSE listing of equity securities of Allianz and the NYSE listing and international offering of equity securities for ING Group, AXA, SCOR and Istituto Nazionale delle Assicurazioni (INA), the privatized Italian insurer. Mr. Oakes has advised on numerous follow-on financings for ING and AEGON, as well as financings for Allianz and AXA. He has advised the Fortis Group on financing and strategic transactions since 1998 and also advised Standard Life plc and Old Mutual, the South African insurer, on their demutualizations, London Stock Exchange listings and concurrent international equity offerings.

Recent transactions include the Standard Life demutualization and flotation, advising the underwriters on the €2 billion primary offering by Danske Bank to fund its acquisition of Sampo Bank, advising the underwriters on a €640 million equity offering by Kaupthing Bank and advising Fortis Bank on the establishment of a US$20 billion 3(a)(2)/Rule 144A U.S. medium-term note program. Other transactions include advising the underwriters on the initial public offering of Trygvesta, the Danish non-life company, Fortis on the follow-on secondary and mandatory exchangeable offering relating to its U.S. insurance operations and Fortis Bank on a €1 billion Tier 1 offering; the underwriters on Allianz’s €4.5 billion rights offering; and the underwriters for the initial public offering of Benfield Group, the London-based reinsurance broker.

Mr. Oakes joined Davis Polk in 1979. He practiced in the London office from 1983 to 1985 and in the New York office from 1985 to 1993, when he returned to London. He became a senior attorney in 1987, counsel in 1996 and partner in 1998.

He graduated from Princeton University in 1975 and in 1979 received his J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Miami Law School, where he was articles and comments editor of the law review.

Mr. Oakes is listed as a leading lawyer in several legal industry publications, including Chambers Europe: Leaders in Their Field, Chambers UK 2008: Leaders in Their Field, Chambers Global: The World’s Leading Lawyers for Business, Legal Media Group’s Expert Guide to the World’s Leading Capital Markets Lawyers and Practical Law Company’s Cross-border Capital Markets Handbook. He is a member of the American Bar Association.