HSF Kramer adds Tebogo Moloko as director as its Johannesburg office celebrates 10th anniversary

South Africa continues to play a critical role as a hub for international investment into Africa, and while the market has faced challenges, it remains a jurisdiction with extraordinary resilience, says Jean Meijer, Johannesburg Managing Partner and Co-Head of Africa Group at leading global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer. 

“In a relatively short time, our Johannesburg office has grown exponentially and I am proud of the progress we continue to make, expanding our teams with top talent and providing clients with best-in-class service,” adds Meijer, as the global firm this month celebrates its 10th anniversary of the opening of its Johannesburg office.

While A&O Shearman and Hogan Lovells announced their firm’s exit from South Africa in September 2024, Herbert Smith Freehills - which in June merged with leading US firm Kramer Levin - has been among other global firms such as Baker McKenzie and Norton Rose Fulbright who have continued to invest in the region. 

Since opening its doors in November 2015, the global firm’s Johannesburg office has grown significantly, to a present-day team of 125 dedicated professionals with 51 lawyers. Last year, the Johannesburg office hired Lesetja Morapi as a competition and antitrust director, promoted Ernst Muller to director specialising in ESG, and hired Patrick Hirsch as a partner in the Projects, Energy, and Infrastructure (PEI) team. 

In the first quarter of 2025, the firm hired Ziyanda Ntshona as a partner to lead the firm's South African Corporate practice, and Spencer Naicker as a director in its PEI practice based in the Johannesburg office. Then in May 2025, Stewart Payne was promoted to Director in the Competition, Regulation & Trade team. 

Now, as HSF Kramer celebrates a decade of sustained growth and commitment to the African legal market, the firm has this week announced the hire of Tebogo Moloko as a director in its Corporate practice based in Johannesburg.

"Tebogo's transactional experience, particularly on complex private equity matters, will provide further depth to the Johannesburg Corporate practice and aligns closely with the firm's strategic priorities,” says Ziyanda Ntshona. “I look forward to the fresh perspectives Tebogo's contributions will bring in delivering for our clients."

Tebogo, who joins HSF Kramer from Bowmans, has spent much of 2025 as a legal advisor on secondment at Standard Bank South Africa, where he assisted with various matters in respect of equity investments and equity finance.

With a Master’s degree in Law from the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League institution in the United States, Tebogo is a corporate lawyer specialising in private equity and M&A including corporate reorganisations, managed disposals, complex black economic empowerment (BEE) transactions and cross-border M&A. 

He also focuses on the establishment of employee share ownership schemes and providing corporate governance advice. He has advised clients across various sectors such as private equity, mining, automotive, water and telecommunications.

“I am looking forward to joining Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer,” he says. “The firm has a leading reputation in the African market and beyond, and I am excited to work with my new colleagues across the global network to deepen and develop the firm's client relationships."

Following the transformative merger of Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin, which became official on 1 June 2025, the firm has 2,700 lawyers spanning 26 offices, and offers comprehensive legal services across every major region of the world.