Edward Williams

Ed Williams is a director at ALN Tanzania | A&K Tanzania, and a member of the Corporate Department. Ed is an English-Qualified Solicitor with over a decade of Corporate Finance experience on the African Continent, and a deep, well-informed, knowledge of global markets.

Ed has advised founders and film stars, private equity funds and pop singers, corporations, charities and C-suite executives on investments, fundraisings, financings, M&A, anti-bribery and corruption, restructurings and governance.

He has extensive experience across the energy, infrastructure, telecommunications and Fintech sectors, as well as in media, music, entertainment and sports.

Ed has spent time on secondment at Virgin Management Limited and EDF Energy (Networks) Limited.

• Law Society of England and Wales

• 2007 Legal Practice Course, BPP Law School, London
• 2006 Graduate Diploma in Law, College of Law, London
• 2005 BA (Hons) English Literature, University of Dublin, Trinity College

2025 – Date – Director, A&K Tanzania, Dar es Salaam
2019 – 2025 – Senior Associate and Partner, Russells, London
2012 – 2019 – Associate and Senior Associate, Dentons, London
2008 – 2012 – Trainee Solicitor and Associate, Herbert Smith Freehills (then Herbert Smith), London

Mergers and Acquisitions

• Acting for Kobalt Capital in connection with the sale of its music fund assets for USD 1.1 billion to KKR, and for USD 325 million to Hipgnosis Songs Ltd.
• Acting for Universal Group in connection with its acquisition of Hyperion Records, a renowned British classical music label, the audio-visual catalogues of the band “Yes”, Camille Purcell’s publishing catalogue and Volta, a production music library.
• Acting for the Sellers in connection with the sale of Chandos Records, a market-leading British classical music label, to the owner of Naxos, a large US classical label.
• Acting for various songwriters and performers in connection with the sale of their recording and publishing catalogues to private equity buyers including the performer David Gray and the band “Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark”.
• Acting for EMI Music Publishing in connection with the purchase of Gum Collections, France’s leading production music library, and the Hannides Brothers’ publishing catalogue.
• Advising on EDF’s EUR 5.8 billion sale of its regulated UK businesses to Cheung Kong Infrastructure, including a secondment to EDF Energy (Networks) Limited.
• Advising a confidential client on the management buyout restructuring of businesses in Cyprus, Gibraltar, Israel, Dubai, Djibouti, Mali, Somalia, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Uganda, Panama, Oman and Guam.
• Advising Kuoni Group on the restructuring of its global travel businesses in more than 30 jurisdictions in preparation for a sale by EQT.

Private Equity and Venture Capital

• Advising African Infrastructure Investment Managers on multiple investments in IHS Holding Limited, Africa’s leading mobile infrastructure company, and the largest owner of mobile telecoms towers across the continent. One investment round, which included Goldman Sachs, IFC, KIC and EPC, raised US$2.8 billion of equity and debt, the largest African fundraising since 2008, and won the Private Equity Africa ‘Deal Advisor of the Year 2015’ Award, and was nominated for the Private Equity Africa ‘Overall Legal Advisor (Deals & Funds) 2015’ Award.
• Advising KKR on its purchases of theTrainline.com from Exponent private equity and management, and Capitaine Train from its private equity and management owners.
• Advising Rancard Solutions Holdings Limited, a mobile-platform advertising company with operations in Ghana and Nigeria in connection with its second round fundraising and associated Share Buy Back.
• Advising the partners of Coda/Paradigm, a live music booking agency, in connection with a partial acquisition of their interests by the Wasserman Group.
• Acting for the founders of the television production company Curve Media in connection with the sale of a majority stake to Night Train Media, owned by Serafin Group, and the exit of a Founder.
• Acting for One Two Many Limited, a record and publishing company, in connection with its partnership with, and debt financing by, Raine Group-backed Firebird Music Holdings.
• Acting for POSE A/R, a fitness app for the health insurance industry, and Alloy Music Ops, a digital synch platform, on their fundraising rounds from VC’s.
• Acting for X-R Touring, a live booking agent in connection with its partnership arrangements and the exit by Yucaipa LLC.
• Advising the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development in connection with its USD 100 million investment into United Sugar Company of Egypt S.A.E., a subsidiary of the Savola Group, and conversion of an existing USD 50 million loan into equity.
• Advising GZI Industries, a West African aluminum can maker, on its restructuring to allow it to bring in further equity and the movement of funds away from Nigeria.
• Advising Daimler in connection with the English law aspects of its investment in the USD 500 million Series E Fundraising by Careem, the transportation network company.
• Acting for the founder of Audiences Technologies, a TV Data Collector, in connection with its restructure and refinancing.

Corporate Governance

• Advising West Indian Ocean Cable Company, the largest shareholder in EASSy, the owner and operator of a 10,000km submarine cable system deployed along the east and south coast of Africa, its directors and executives, on a diverse range of issues, including a share buyback and associated subscription and investment, two group restructurings, internal governance and shareholder matters, including negotiating with its government-owned telco shareholders, the renegotiation of its financing arrangements with its DFI lenders and the insolvency of a shareholder.
• Extensive anti-bribery and corruption work, including advising Innovative Systems Incorporated in connection with the impact of UK Government Sanctions on its investments in Iraq, Mitsui & Co Ltd on potential bribery in Nigeria, a Confidential Client on the alleged misfeasance of a senior director of a sub-Saharan African petroleum exploration company, and conducting an on-the-ground anti-bribery and corruption audit for Sumitomo Chemical on a potential pharmaceutical business partner in Ethiopia.
• Advising Gatsby Africa in connection with various contractual, investment, structural and business-related matters.

Energy, Projects and Infrastructure

• Acting for Mocoh SA, a West-African energy supplier, in connection with the restructuring of its Ghanaian group entities.
• Advising Mota-Engil in connection with its joint venture arrangements with the Government of Rwanda to build an airport at Bugesera in Rwanda.
• Advising Statoil in connection with its arrangements with Statec to build and operate photovoltaic plants in Brazil.
• Advising African Alpha Investment Managers and Electrifi in connection with convertible loans to, and warrant instruments in Joule Africa, a hydropower developer.
• Advising the Government of the Republic of Sierra Leone in connection with the Kissy oil jetty Concession Agreement.
• Advising Electralink in connection with the impact of smart meters on the regulation of the UK gas industry, and the roll-out of smart meters in the UK.
• Advising on the Funded Decommissioning Programment for EDF Energy’s proposal to build new nuclear power stations in the UK.
• Advising HS1 Ltd on its rail timetabling arrangements and performance regime in the UK.

Media, Sports and Entertainment

• Acting for Kobalt Capital in connection with the sale of its music fund assets for USD 1.1 billion to KKR, and for USD 325 million to Hipgnosis Songs Ltd.
• Acting for Beggars Group Limited, the world’s largest independent record label valued at £500 million, in connection with the restructuring of its shareholding interests in its group companies.
• Acting for Universal Group in connection with its acquisition of Hyperion Records, a renowned British classical music label, the audio-visual catalogues of the band “Yes”, Camille Purcell’s publishing catalogue and Volta, a production music library.
• Acting for the sellers of Chandos Records, a market-leading British classical music label, to the owner of Naxos, a large US classical label.
• Acting for the band Culture Club in connection with the financing and securitisation of their catalogue.
• Acting for various songwriters and performers on the sale of their recording and publishing catalogues to private equity buyers including the performer David Gray and the band “Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark”.
• Acting for EMI Music Publishing in connection with the purchase of Gum Collections, France’s leading production music library, and the Hannides Brothers’ publishing catalogue.
• Acting for an actor and screenwriter in connection with the provision of debt financing to a hotel.
• Acting for Goldrush Pictures Limited in connection with the financing of various film projects.
• Advising the partners of Coda/Paradigm, a live music booking agency, in connection with a partial acquisition of their interests by the Wasserman Group.
• Acting for the founders of the television production company Curve Media on the sale of a majority stake to Night Train Media, owned by Serafin Group, and the exit of a Founder.
• Acting for One Two Many Limited, a record and publishing company, in connection with its partnership with, and debt financing by, Raine Group-backed Firebird Music Holdings.
• Acting for X-R Touring, a live booking agent, in connection with its partnership arrangements and the exit by Yucaipa LLC.
• Acting for Sue Terry Voices, a voiceover agency, in connection with the transfer of ownership interests to existing employees.
• Advising on the potential insolvency of Utopia Distribution Services, Europe’s largest music distribution company.
• Advising on the impact of Spotify’s amended terms of payment to various music publishers, recording artists and producers.