Anglo-German law firm CMS has added a ninth partner in Singapore, with energy and infrastructure-focused transactions attorney Gerald Licnachan joining from U.S. law firm Reed Smith.

Licnachan has advised on cross-border M&A across Southeast Asia, India, Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan, with a particular focus on the energy, natural resources, infrastructure and transportation sectors.

Licnachan became partner at Reed Smith in 2019, having rejoined the firm in 2015 after an in-house stint as group general counsel of Singapore-based investment group Steppe Capital.

He was also the co-chair of Reed Smith’s Indonesia business team.

“Emerging and frontier markets in Asia are expected to continue attracting investments in the energy and renewables space, and Gerald’s expertise will be a real asset to the team,” said Toby Grainger, Singapore managing partner and corporate head at CMS.

Licnachan becomes CMS’ second Asia partner hire in two months, following the addition of Adrian Elms from DLA Piper in Hong Kong.

Following his departure, Reed Smith now has 15 partners in Singapore, including funds leader Han Ming Ho, who joined from Sidley Austin last month.