Ashurst has revealed a new international strategy after an independent review by consultants Bain & Co revealed it should focus on growing key areas such as finance and infrastructure.

The review was launched last year, soon after Ashurst’s tie-up with Australian firm Blake Dawson. Chairman Ben Tidswell said its main aim for 2015 had been to “build on the global partnership, having got through the integration,” with the Bain review helping to pinpoint key growth areas.

As a result, Tidswell said there are certain parts of the business that Ashurst is now pushing harder, including its finance practice. In particular, the firm is keen to capitalise on its Hong Kong capital markets practice, with equity capital markets partner Lina Lee recently appointed managing partner in the region. 

Tidswell Ben Ashurst
Ben Tidswell

“Another aim is to make a global platform for infrastructure,” said Tidswell, “in which we can work on more deals like the £24bn Hinkley Point nuclear plant project.” 

In this vein, Ashurst picked up the mandate from the Department of Food and Rural Affairs to work with it on the Thames Tideway Tunnel project, while the firm also advised Hitachi Rail as they were awarded a traffic management system contract with Network Rail. 

The focus on infrastructure has helped to form another part of Ashurst’s 2015 strategy, which is to build on its presence in the resources sector. Tidswell said mining, oil and gas were major growth areas, with the firm this year building on its relationship with Vedanta Resources as the company decided to merge two exploration subsidiaries. 

However, Tidswell said there are several challenges to implementing the strategy, such as falling oil prices leading to uncertainty in the global markets. He also highlighted that the firm struggled when the IPO markets seemed to close after Christmas 2014, having an effect on its 2014/15 financial results, in which turnover rose by just £3m. 

“The whole focus now is how to extract a better market share,” Tidswell said. “The IPO markets are open at the moment and we have to capitalise on that. We have to make the most of the market conditions on a global basis.”