On the same day that King & Spalding partner Christopher Wray was nominated by President Donald Trump to serve as the nation's next FBI director, the firm reached outside the U.S. to recruit a pair of Ropes & Gray finance partners for its London office.

Mark Wesseldine and Fergus Wheeler recently resigned from Ropes & Gray's partnership ahead of plans to join King & Spalding in London, where the Atlanta-based Am Law 100 firm set up shop in 2003. Wesseldine, a former partner at Magic Circle firm Allen & Overy, joined Ropes & Gray in 2013 from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson.

His practice focuses on leveraged buyouts, restructurings and other special situation financings. He has previously acted for clients such as investment manager KKR Credit Advisors LLP and independent credit adviser Park Square Capital Partners LP.