U.S. law firm Loeb & Loeb has expanded its capital markets team in Hong Kong by hiring Shirley Lau and Polly Liu as partners from Lau Horton & Wise, the Hong Kong association firm of CMS that was founded by Lau.

Both Lau and Liu focus on securities and corporate finance transactions. They advise on public offerings, compliance matters related to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Code on Takeovers and Mergers, as well as general corporate matters. Additionally, they negotiate and structure public and private mergers and acquisitions transactions.

“Shirley and Polly have extensive experience advising clients on substantial corporate and securities transactions,” said Lawrence Venick, managing partner of Loeb & Loeb’s Hong Kong and Beijing offices, in a statement. “We are thrilled to continue to expand our Hong Kong offerings and the cross-border transactional work we are doing for our clients.”

The arrival of Lau and Liu has taken the number of partners in Loeb & Loeb’s Hong Kong office to 15, including two partners dually based in Beijing and Hong Kong. The firm’s capital markets team now has 11 partners.

The hires come at a time when international law firms have been shrinking their Hong Kong operations and halting further investment in Greater China due to anaemic market conditions in the region and geopolitical concerns.

Most recently, U.S. firm Mayer Brown moved to spin off its Hong Kong entity 16 years after merging with the local firm Jonson Stokes & Master (JSM).

Meanwhile, the departures of Lau and Liu leave Lau, Horton & Wise with eight partners. They include Adrian Elms and Conor Warde, you joined last year.