Allen & Gledhill has advised PSA International and PSA Treasury on the issue of US$650 million 2.25 percent notes due 2030 by PSA Treasury, under its US$3.5 billion global medium term note programme. PSA International is the guarantor for the notes. Partners Tan Tze Gay, Wu Zhaoqi and Sunit Chhabra led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Allen & Gledhill has also acted as transaction counsel for Shwe Taung Real Estate on its joint venture agreement with Aeon Mall to develop, manage and operate shopping malls, the first of which will be constructed on two land plots owned by Shwe Taung’s affiliate companies in Thaketa Township, Myanmar. Shwe Taung is a leading Myanmar conglomerate and real estate developer, and currently operates several large shopping malls in Yangon under the “Junction” brand. Aeon is also the leading Japan shopping mall operator. This joint venture is Aeon’s first entry into the Myanmar market for shopping mall projects, after the establishment of its first Myanmar business presence in 2011. Myanmar director Oh Hsiu-Hau led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Assegaf Hamzah & Partners, a member firm of Rajah & Tann Asia, has acted as Indonesian counsel for Aplikasi Karya Anak Bangsa (Gojek), Indonesia’s leading tech platform that provides access to a wide range of services, including ride-hailing, payments, food delivery and logistics, on the acquisition of Moka Teknologi Indonesia (MTI), an Indonesian startup providing a cloud-based point-of-sale system called ‘Moka’. The acquisition was conducted indirectly, through MTI’s holding company in Singapore. Partners Bono Daru Adji and Carol Lim led the firm’s team in the transaction, which cemented Gojek’s position further in the digital payment industry.
AZB & Partners is advising Reliance Industries and Jio Platforms on the approximately Rs66 billion (US$874.5m) acquisition by General Atlantic, thru General Atlantic Singapore, of a minority equity stake in Jio Platforms. Partners Ashwath Rau, Nilanjana Singh and Bharat Budholia are leading the firm’s team in the transaction, which was signed on May 17, 2020 and is yet to be completed.
AZB & Partners is also advising The Carlyle Group on its Rs15.8 billion (US$209m) acquisition, thru CA Harbor Investments, of up to 74 percent equity stake in SeQuent Scientific. Partners Zia Mody, Darshika Kothari and Sayak Maity are leading the firm’s team in the transaction, which was signed on May 8, 2020 and is yet to be completed.
Baker McKenzie FenXun (FTZ) Joint Operation has advised International Fruit Genetics (IFG) on its trademarks registration and on carrying out enforcement activities against alleged infringers. IFG is the largest private breeder of table grapes in the world, and breeds some of the most popular grape varieties in the market. IP partner Andrew Sim led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Baker McKenzie has also advised Ishikari Bioenergy on its involvement in a biomass power generation joint venture in Ishikari City, Hokkaido, Japan. Ishikari Bioenergy was founded by Okumura, Kyuden Mirai Energy and New Circle Energy, with 50 percent, 30 percent and 20 percent shares, respectively. New Circle Energy was established by Marunouchi Infrastructure and Shin Energy Development. Last February 5, 2020, Ishikari Bioenergy concluded a loan agreement with a group of financial institutions, including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation as lead arranger, Resona Bank as co-arranger, and Kansai Mirai Bank. The firm advised Ishikari Bioenergy on the arrangement of project finance. Nick Eguchi, partner and co-chair of the renewable energy group at the firm’s Tokyo office, supported by partner Kosuke Suzuki, led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Davis Polk has advised the joint book-running managers on a US$750 million SEC-registered debt offering by Flex. The offering consisted of US$425 million principal amount of its 3.75 percent notes due 2026, and US$325 million principal amount of its 4.875 percent notes due 2030. Headquartered in Singapore, Flex is a globally-recognised provider of sketch-to-scale services, from conceptual sketch to full-scale production. Flex designs, builds, ships and manages complete packaged consumer and enterprise products, from medical devices and connected automotive systems to sustainable lighting and cloud and data centre solutions, for companies of all sizes in various industries and end-markets. Partner Alan Denenberg, supported by partner Michael Farber, led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Duane Morris has advised Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcombank) on closing its inaugural US$500 million loan from a syndicate of 24 financial institutions from Australia, China, India, Singapore, Taiwan and the UAE. With a margin of 1.5 percent per annum over LIBOR, the three-year senior unsecured loan signed on April 17, 2020 was substantially oversubscribed, with the final amount largely exceeding the initial US$300 million target. The facility was coordinated by United Overseas Bank (UOB), who also acts as the facility agent. UOB, together with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, CTBC Bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC and Taishin International Bank, jointly underwrote and arranged the facility for Techcombank. London partners Linda Crow and Drew Salvest led the firm’s team in the transaction, which is the largest private bank international borrowing in Vietnam.
Han Kun has acted as China counsel to the joint book-runners on DouYu International Holdings’ US IPO and listing on the Nasdaq. DouYu is the largest game-centric live streaming platform in China and a pioneer in the eSports value chain.
Han Kun Law Offices and its Hong Kong associated law firm have acted as China and Hong Kong counsels, respectively, for Hevol Services Group on its global offering and listing in Hong Kong. Hevol Services Group is a reputable market player in the property management industry in China, providing property management services, community-related services and property developer-related services in China for more than 16 years.
J Sagar Associates has advised UmboID Tech and its promoters on its pre-series A round of equity funding from Bharat Inclusive Technologies Seed Holdings, Varanium Nexgen Trust and AL Trust, acting through its trustee Vistra ITCL (India). UmboID, under the brand name Riskcovry, is an insurtech platform that develops solutions which enable insurance distribution, risk, policy and claims management. Partner Probir Roy Chowdhury led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Khaitan & Co has advised Sunrise Foods and its promoters on the sale of 100 percent equity share capital in Sunrise to ITC. Sunrise is a leading manufacturer of Indian spices, like ground spices, blended spices, instant food mixes and a host of other food products in the eastern part of India. ITC is one of India’s foremost private sector companies, which has a diversified presence in FMCG, hotels, packaging, paperboards and specialty papers, and agri-business. Partner Surbhi Kejriwal led the firm’s team in the transaction, which was announced on May 24, 2020.
Khaitan & Co has also advised the Iron Pillar Group, a venture capital investment firm, on setting up a US$45 million offshore top-up fund, which will act as a ‘sidecar fund’ to the existing fund, Iron Pillar Fund I, launched by Iron Pillar amid the outbreak of Covid-19. The top up fund was set up primarily to provide additional growth capital to select portfolio companies held by the existing fund, to assist such companies in solidifying their lead in the current market. The firm also assisted the client in LP negotiations to secure the closing of the ‘sidecar’ fund. Partners Siddharth Shah, Bijal Ajinkya and Vivek Mimani led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Maples and Calder has acted as Cayman Islands counsel to Guazi.com on a US$280 million series E1 round funding, led by SVF Car Subco (Singapore) and SC Auto. The company is China’s largest online marketplace, and operates as a consumer-to-consumer used car trading platform. Partner Everton Robertson led the firm’s team in the transaction, which closed in April 2020.
Maples and Calder has also acted as Cayman Islands counsel to General Atlantic, a leading global growth equity firm, on a US$98 million Series D round funding by CANbridge Pharmaceuticals, led by General Atlantic and WuXi AppTec, with participation from RA Capital Management, Hudson Bay Capital Management, YuanMing Prudence Fund and Tigermed. CANbridge is a China-based bio-pharmaceutical company. Partner Matt Roberts led the firm’s team in the transaction, which closed on March 10, 2020.
Rajah & Tann Singapore, member firm of Rajah & Tann Asia, is acting for BreadTalk Group on the approximately S$433.56 million (US$306m) voluntary unconditional cash offer by United Overseas Bank, for and on behalf of BTG Holding, to acquire all of the issued ordinary shares in the capital of BreadTalk Group, other than those already owned, controlled or agreed to be acquired by BTG Holding. Partner Sandy Foo is leading the firm’s team in the transaction.
Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co has advised ChrysCapital on its additional investment in Hero FinCorp (HF). ChrysCapital, along with certain other investors and promoter entities of the Hero group, subscribed to equity shares of HF for Rs10.74 billion (US$142m). Partners Gunjan Shah, Karun Prakash and Aparna Mehra led the firm’s team in the transaction. Hero FinCorp was advised by J Sagar Associates.
Simpson Thacher is representing KKR on its Rs113.67 billion (US$1.5b) investment in Jio Platforms. This transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of approximately US$65 billion, and an enterprise value of approximately US$68 billion. This is KKR’s largest investment in Asia, and will translate into a 2.3 percent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis. Hong Kong M&A partner Ian Ho and New York tax partner Nancy Mehlman led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Skadden has advised Lufax Holding on a US$1.19 billion three-year syndicated facility, with an accordion of up to US$310 million, borrowed by a Hong Kong subsidiary of Lufax and guaranteed by Lufax. The facility was co-arranged by Citigroup Global Markets Asia and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, with ten additional banks participating as lenders. John Hartley led the firm’s team in the transaction.
S&R Associates has represented Avatar Growth Capital on an investment in SirionLabs, a technology company providing proprietary software contract management services. The investment is part of a US$44 million round, which involves another investor. Partners Sandip Bhagat and Sudip Mahapatra led the firm’s team in the transaction.
