Winston & Strawn Grows Finance Practice with V&E Hire

Winston & Strawn announced Tuesday that Houston finance partner Ryan B. Hunsaker has joined the firm from Vinson & Elkins.

Hunsaker was previously of counsel at V&E, where he gained a decade of experience in commercial lending and finance transactions, with a heavy focus on oil and gas exploration and production and oilfield services.

He has helped secure more than $6 billion in loans and other credit facilities for large, publicly traded oil and gas producers, as well as mid-sized public and private companies.

“Traditional energy producers are beginning to transition into a cleaner future, which will require substantial capital investment,” Winston & Strawn Chairman Tom Fitzgerald said in a statement. “Ryan’s experience in this arena will be a substantial benefit in helping to drive this forward.”

Hunsaker, a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, was part of the V&E corporate team that advised the initial purchasers in Aethon United BR’s $750 million private placement offering of senior unsecured notes earlier this year.

Last year, he helped guide Oak Tree Capital Management in the purchase of a portfolio of nearly $500 million in energy loans from Hancock Whitney for $257 million.

Other clients Hunsaker has advised include Targa Resources, Natural Resource Partners and Clearlake Capital Group-backed Gravity Oilfield Services.