At the end of March 2026, under the guidance of the State Administration of Financial Supervision and Administration of China, the syndicated loan business tool book "Theoretical Essentials and Operational Practices of Syndicated Loans" was officially published and distributed by China Financial Publishing House, led by the China Banking Association Syndicated Loan and Transaction Professional Committee (hereinafter referred to as the "Syndication Committee"). This book is another important action taken by the syndicate committee to regulate and lead the development of the syndicated loan market and business after the release of the new version of the syndicated loan contract demonstration text in December 2025. Based on its rich experience and profound understanding in numerous syndicated loan transactions both domestically and internationally, King&Wood Mallesons has been invited to participate in the compilation of "Essentials of Syndicated Loan Theory and Operational Practice".

The Syndicate Committee has been committed to the standardization and normalization of syndicated loans and transactions. Lawyer Jin Du has been involved in drafting and revising the model text of syndicated loan contracts since 2006. Starting from the beginning of 2025, King&Wood Mallesons once again assisted the Syndicate Committee and its member banks in revising the model text of syndicated loan contracts based on new laws and regulations such as the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China and relevant judicial interpretations, the Measures for the Administration of Working Capital Loans, the Measures for the Administration of Fixed Asset Loans, and the Measures for the Administration of Syndicated Loan Business, combined with the new development of the loan market.

In order to help colleagues of member banks better understand the market development of syndicated loan business and the newly released demonstration text of syndicated loan contracts, almost at the same time as the revision work of the demonstration text of syndicated loan contracts began, the syndicated committee also organized relevant institutions to start the compilation work of "Essentials of Syndicated Loan Theory and Operational Practice". The business section of the book is co authored by frontline operators and direct managers of syndicated loan businesses from relevant banking institutions. The financing team of King&Wood Mallesons mainly wrote the main content of the syndicated loan contract and the legal matters involved in other chapters.

As a comprehensive guide for explaining the theory and practice of syndicated loans, "Essentials of Syndicated Loan Theory and Operational Practice" consists of eight chapters and twenty sections. The main content includes an overview of syndicated loans, members and responsibilities of syndicated loans, initiation, organization, and disbursement of syndicated loans, management and risks of syndicated loans, transfer of syndicated loans, syndicated loan agreements, and application cases of syndicated loans. It helps market participants understand the practice and latest development of the syndicated loan market and business from a business and legal perspective. Taking the grouping and transfer transactions of syndicated loans as an example, this is not only a newly added or significantly changed part of the "Management Measures for Syndicated Loan Business", but also a key description in the "Code of Conduct for Syndicated Loan Business". It is a matter that market participants pay more attention to, have more questions about, and urgently need clarification and explanation. For such matters, there are detailed descriptions and explanations in the "Essentials of Theory and Operational Practice of Syndicated Loans". Of course, it is precisely because the book needs to cover a wide range of content and a broad audience that it is inevitable that it cannot elaborate more on the diverse arrangements related to specific transactions, which will need to be designed and practiced in many future specific transactions.

The personnel from King&Wood Mallesons who participated in the revision of the model text of the syndicated loan contract (2025 version) and the compilation of the "Essentials of Theory and Operational Practice of Syndicated Loans" mainly include Liu Zhigang, Lv Yinghao, Long Jing, and Li Wenting from the financing business field of King&Wood Mallesons Bank. The Bank Financing Department of King&Wood Mallesons Hong Kong Office has also provided valuable assistance to the above work based on its long-term experience in providing legal support to APLMA.

In the future, King&Wood Mallesons will continue to rely on its profound accumulation in the field of debt financing, as well as the trust and support of numerous banking institutions and corporate clients, to participate extensively in major market transactions. We sincerely look forward to providing strong legal support to our clients and contributing to the rule making, standard text construction, market and business development of China's syndicated loan business.

Cover image source: White Clouds and Moon ? Du Feichen