NewswireTODAY - /newswire/ - London, United Kingdom, 2010/09/21 - Xtract Europe expands its team with the addition of James Slessinger, a leading international finance lawyer. James will head the legal team for Xtract Europe's High Yield bond covenant service and for the launch of it's European Bank Loan service.

Xtract Europe is pleased to announce the hiring of James Slessenger to head up its legal team in London. James brings over 25 years of experience in the European loan market, including 12 years as a partner at Herbert Smith LLP, one of London’s leading international law firms.

Xtract Europe successfully launched its European High Yield and Convertible bond covenant analysis service in May of this year. James has been added to the team to build on the strength of the High Yield bond service and provide the expertise for the launch of Xtract Europe’s Bank Loan covenant service.

Mike Knox, Founder of Xtract Research LLC said “The hiring of James will be extremely significant for our European business. James is one of the most experienced debt finance lawyers in the market and will offer our clients great insight into covenant related issues in high yield through to distressed situations, restructurings and bank debt. “

During James’s time at Herbert Smith, he was most notably the lead partner on the debt side for Eurotunnel on the restructuring of its £9.5 billion debt that had started in September 1995 and was completed in May 1998. He was further involved in Eurotunnel in 2001 and 2002 on innovative repackaging of its post-1998 debt instruments. He has worked on numerous other debt financings, many of them multi-layered, in the UK, France and Germany where he was seconded for part of his career and has substantial cross border knowledge.

Xtract Europe (xtracteurope.com) is a division of Xtract Research LLC (xtractresearch.com), a leading provider of covenant oriented fixed income research and data. Xtract has a significant presence in the United States, particularly in the syndicated loan space through its partnership with the LSTA. Xtract was acquired earlier this year by an affiliate of the FT Group in order to further its expansion into Europe. Xtract's clients consist of many of the world's largest hedge funds, investment managers, insurance companies, private equity firms and investment banks.

Xtract Europe Contact: Natasha Brooks / T: +44(0)20 7059 6202

Agency / Source: Xtract Research, LLC

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