Brazilian firm Pinheiro Neto Advogados has expanded into Asia with an office in Tokyo – the first major firm from the South American country to do so.

The office is headed by partner Yuka Ono, who specialises in banking, project finance, mergers and acquisitions, and general corporate matters. Previously, she led the firm's Japan desk from São Paulo.

Before joining Pinheiro Neto in 2013, Ono practised in New York at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher for two years. Prior to that, she worked in finance for about a decade, most recently at Japan's legacy Mizuho Corporate Bank, where she was vice-president of the global trade and global structured divisions as well as team leader of the Latin America group.

"The personal and face-to-face relationship is highly valued in Japanese culture – being a key to building trust and developing business," Ono said in a statement.

"This is a natural movement after decades of working with the Asian market," added Pinheiro Neto's São Paulo-based managing partner, Alexandre Bertoldi. "We want to further strengthen the relationship with our clients in the region."

Several international firms have opened offices in Tokyo in recent years, including Mayer Brown, Debevoise & Plimpton, King & Spalding, Withers and offshore firm Harneys. They came to Japan riding on a recent wave of outbound projects and particularly M&A work emanating from Japan.

Lawyers in Tokyo told Law.com International's The Asian Lawyer last year that global firms need to have an office in Tokyo and be near their Japanese clients in order to capture work from the country.

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