Debevoise & Plimpton's City arm has advised Exponent Private Equity on the closure of an £805m fund, marking the latest example of US law firms edging into the UK funds arena.

London private equity partner Geoffrey Kittredge led the Debevoise team, assisted by tax partners Richard Ward in the UK and Peter Schuur in New York.

Kittredge, who became a partner in 2005, has a strong relationship with Exponent, which was founded by former directors of 3i. He advised on the spin-out from 3i and on Exponent's first fund, which raised £400m.

The mandate is further evidence of US firms actively targeting London's fundraising scene, which has traditionally been dominated by SJ Berwin and Clifford Chance (CC).

Debevoise has a strong reputation in the US fund formation field and the firm is attempting to gain a slice of market share in the UK. Other US firms to make similar moves in the sector include Kirkland & Ellis, which hired a team from SJ Berwin last year, and White & Case, which recruited CC funds partner Matthew Judd in 2006.

In the US it is common for the same firm to advise clients on funds and transactional work, but in the UK, buy-out houses often use separate M&A counsel. Exponent's best-known client relationship is with Travers Smith, which advises the firm on its transactional work. In recent years Travers has acted on deals including its £235m acquisition of News International's TSL education division and its £163m acquisition of online train ticket retailer TheTrainline.

Exponent also instructs Allen & Overy, which advised on its $340m (£173m) acquisition of a majority share in V Holdings last April.