Baker & McKenzie has expanded its South Africa offering with the hire of private equity and corporate funds partner Scott Nelson from ENSafrica.

Nelson was head of ENSafrica's Africa practice group and joins Bakers' Johannesburg office today.

He specialises in cross-border and corporate transactions, and represents many of the international Africa-focused private equity funds and sponsors.

The hire comes four months after Baker & McKenzie launched an employment practice in Johannesburg when the international firm hired Johan Botes, then director of Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr's (CDH) employment practice, as a partner.

In the same month, ENSafrica announced it had merged with Ghanaian firm Oxford & Beaumont Solicitors to form ENSafrica Ghana.

Last month Bakers hired former DLA Piper ally CDH's national head of competition Nick Altini. He joined the global firm as a partner in Johannesburg along with senior associate Leana Engelbrecht.

Bakers' Johannesburg office opened in May 2012 with 31 lawyers and staff from the collapsing Dewey & LeBoeuf. It has since grown to more than 100 lawyers and staff. The firm has three offices in Africa in Cairo, Casablanca and Johannesburg.

International firms have been active in the South African market recently as they continue to expand their offices.

Last month Herbert Smith Freehills' (HSF) Africa co-head Martin Kavanagh discussed HSF's plans to grow the firm's South African offering, saying HSF is on course to grow its Johannesburg office to around 50 lawyers by the end of 2017.

In February last year global law firm Dentons launched its second South African office in Johannesburg less than a year after it launched its South African offering with an office in Cape Town.

The new office will initially operate with one partner leading a three lawyer-strong team, with the expectation that it will expand to 25 lawyers over the next three years.