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Africa-focused finance lawyer Stephen Matthews joins Spencer West as partner
International law firm Spencer West has bolstered its expertise in African transactions with the recent arrival of debt finance and developing markets expert Stephen Matthews as a member of its international finance team. Stephen will be focused on supporting regional teams and clients on the African continent.
Experienced debt finance and cross-border expert Stephen Matthews says it’s great to be joining Spencer West, “an exciting and fast growing international law firm, with opportunities all around” as a Banking & Finance partner based in London.
Matthews is an English-law qualified debt finance expert who focuses on frontier and developing markets, and has significant experience in financings across Sub-Saharan Africa, having previously been based in Nairobi, Kenya, where he was a Director at leading African law firm Bowmans. Earlier in his career, Matthews was a member of Allen & Overy’s Africa Desk (he also led the global firm’s Banking practice in Russia for many years), and most recently he was a partner at Keystone Law.
His past African experience includes advising the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in relation to loan facilities for Access Bank Nigeria and Bank of Ghana; Stanbic Bank Kenya on a USD 26.5 million development financing of a warehouse logistics facility in Nairobi; Advised Renewable Energy Performance Platform in relation to a senior secured loan facility with detachable equity warrants for Kleen Hydro Limited in Kenya; and leading educational presentations in sub-Saharan Africa for market participants and stakeholders in the banking and finance area.
Matthews advises a wide range of financial institutions and other parties, and as a partner at Spencer West, he will be a member of the firm’s international finance team, focused on supporting regional teams and clients on the African continent.
Spencer West is a leading international law firm, committed to delivering exceptional legal services with core values of collaboration, entrepreneurship, and excellence. Its international footprint spans more than 20 countries, connecting clients with a network of highly experienced expert lawyers across Africa, the UK, US, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Americas, and the Caribbean. “We tailor our teams to your unique needs using our local knowledge to deliver excellence across the globe.”
Originally established in London in 2014 as a ‘consultant model law firm’, Spencer West officially launched its full South African office in Johannesburg last November.
The international firm had previously established a presence in East Africa with the launch of its Kenyan office in early 2024, then as reported by Africa Legal it added a Rwandan office in July 2025, then a new Mauritius office earlier this year.
In April, Spencer West South Africa announced the arrival of US-trained lawyer, financial services expert, and longtime in-house counsel Calvin Christopher as a Regulatory and Compliance partner in Johannesburg. In May, highly experienced South African tax specialist Liesl Kruger joined the firm as a Tax Services Partner.