Jon Gray, a partner at the British law firm Linklaters, will join Davis Polk in Tokyo, a source close to the matter told FinanceAsia.
Linklaters confirmed Gray's departure in a terse but friendly statement late last week.
Gray joined Linklaters in New York as counsel in 2005, becoming a partner in 2007, according to the firm's website.
A fluent Japanese speaker, he has been a key partner covering Northeast Asia from the firm's Tokyo and Hong Kong offices since relocating to the region in 2009.
Gray was lead partner and underwriter representative on a number of major transactions in Japan in 2014 including Seibu Holdings' initial public offering and the debt offering of Mizuho Financial Group -- the first Tier-2, Basel lll-compliant transaction for a Japanese bank.
The Columbia Law School graduate has focused on domestic and cross-border capital markets transactions, according to his Linklater’s profile. He has advised on a wide range of debt, equity and restructuring transactions, including high-yield debt offerings, the profile added.
He began his career in 1997 as an associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
