Jeff Robins

Partner

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New York

Tel: +1 212 909 6526

Overview

Jeffrey L. Robins is a corporate partner and a member of the Banking Group. His practice focuses on representing broker-dealers, swap dealers, banks, securities ... Read Full Biography

Experience

- M&T Bank Corporation in the sale of its Collective Investment Trust business to Madison Dearborn Partners.
- Constellation, backed by institutional investors Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, in its acquisition of and $500 million capital contribution to Ohio National, as part of Ohio National’s demutualization process.
- Atlas Merchant Capital in its investment in and strategic partnership with MarshBerry, a boutique investment banking and consulting firm.
- Mizuho, a leading global bank, in its acquisition of Capstone Partners, a leading middle-market placement agent.
- Canaccord Genuity Group, an independent, full-service financial services firm, in its acquisition of Sawaya Partners, an independent M&A advisory firm.
- Prudential in the sale of its retirement plan business to Empower for a total transaction value of $3.55 billion.
- American International Group in its strategic partnership with Blackstone Group for its Life & Retirement business.
- MassMutual in its $3.5 billion acquisition of Great American Life, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Financial Group.
- BMO in its acquisition of Clearpool Group, a provider of holistic electronic trading solutions.

Education

Harvard Law School, 2001, J.D.
Stanford University, 1989, B.A.
Stanford University, 1989, M.A.

Jeffrey L. Robins is a corporate partner and a member of the Banking Group. His practice focuses on representing broker-dealers, swap dealers, banks, securities exchanges, industry associations and buy-side institutions in regulatory and transactional matters.Throughout his career, Mr. Robins has carved out a reputation as a leading broker-dealer and derivatives lawyer with a sophisticated practice. Recognized as a leading lawyer by Chambers Global (2023), Chambers USA (2022) and IFLR1000 (2022), and recommended by The Legal 500 US (2022), he is noted for his regulatory and transactional skills and described by clients as “a strong broker-dealer lawyer who provides great client service in a timely manner.” Sources say that he has “great judgment” and he is said to be “an excellent communicator,” “a great intellect,” a “go-to lawyer on transactional work that presents unique or new issues,” a “swap dealer expert,” and a “very technically capable lawyer.” He has substantial experience helping clients navigate registration, margin, capital, custody, and sales and trading issues, cross-border transactions, structuring transactions using multiple regulated entities, the development of compliance and supervisory policies and procedures, the regulatory characterization of securities and derivatives transactions and a number of other regulatory issues. He also has extensive transactional experience in bilateral financing and derivatives transactions, particularly those that are heavily regulated. In addition, Mr. Robins is ranked in Chambers in both the broker-dealer regulation and derivatives categories.Mr. Robins joined Debevoise in 2018. Prior to joining Debevoise, Mr. Robins was a partner at an international law firm, where he also served as co-chair of the firm’s Financial Services Group.Mr. Robins received his J.D. magna cum laude from Harvard Law School and earned an M.A. in Russian and East European Studies and a B.A. with distinction from Stanford University. He also served as a clerk for the Hon. Cynthia Holcomb Hall of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.