Weil Gotshal & Manges has added to its London capital markets practice with the hire of a new partner from Shearman & Sterling.

Rob Ferguson, who will join Weil's partnership from his of counsel role at Shearman, has a mainly issuer-focused equity practice, and advises on a range of capital markets transactions including high yield and investment grade debt and equity offerings.

His investment banking clients have included Barclays Capital, Credit Suisse, HSBC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Standard Chartered Bank.

Weil's London capital markets head James Cole commented: "The addition of another US partner to our European capital markets team significantly strengthens our equity and high yield capital markets capability."

Ferguson added: "Weil's commitment to grow its international capital markets and finance practice, combined with the firm's outstanding reputation in restructurings and private equity, made this a very appealing move for me."

The news follows two other recent hires for Weil's finance and restructuring teams in London, with Jones Day's London restructuring head Adam Plainer and former Ashurst banking partner James Hogben both joining the US firm since January.

London managing partner Mike Francies said: "Strengthening our capital markets, finance and restructuring teams is a key priority for us, both in London and globally. Rob's versatility, broad product expertise and high yield experience make him an excellent addition to the team."