Kooi Thong Lai is a Partner and the Country Managing Director for Lao PDR, based in DFDL’s Vientiane office. He brings 17 years of post qualification experience gained across three jurisdictions — Malaysia, Cambodia, and Laos — covering both private practice and alternative legal services. His background includes serving as a Partner at a top tier Malaysian law firm and managing the Malaysia office of an alternative legal service provider established by a global law firm. Prior to leading DFDL Lao PDR, he worked for a number of years in DFDL’s banking and finance practice in Cambodia, supporting mandates throughout the region.
His experience covers advising governments, government agencies, financial institutions, bond and Sukuk holders, trustees, and issuers or borrowers on a wide range of financing and lending transactions, including bilateral and syndicated facilities, bond and Sukuk issuances, trade finance arrangements, and derivatives.
Kooi Thong has extensive experience in Islamic finance, having advised on transactions involving various Shariah compliant structures. He also regularly advises on financial regulatory and compliance matters, including financial institution licensing, regulatory frameworks, corporate governance, and benchmark rate reforms.
He is additionally experienced in aviation matters, particularly aircraft leasing and repossession issues.
Beyond his finance related work, Kooi Thong has broad corporate experience, including supporting clients in transactional, strategic, and operational matters across multiple sectors. His work includes assisting with structuring considerations, due diligence, and overall transaction management.
Kooi Thong holds an LLB (Honours) from the University of Reading, U.K., and a postgraduate certificate in Finance & Law from SOAS University of London. He is admitted to the English Bar and the Malaysian Bar and is recognized as a foreign lawyer authorized to practice in Laos. His broad-based legal and sectoral experience enhances DFDL’s work across Southeast Asia.
He is recognized as a Notable Practitioner by IFLR1000 (Asia Pacific), which notes: “Kooi Thong Lai heads the team and leverages its experience in a variety of corporate and commercial matters, advising both private and public companies in transactional, financial and regulatory matters, especially in the energy, infrastructure and resources sectors.”
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