Allen & Gledhill has advised The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Singapore Branch and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation, as arrangers of the programme and joint lead managers and joint book-runners for the issue, on the establishment by SPH Reit of a S$1 billion (US$724.8m) multicurrency debt issuance programme and issue of S$300 million 4.5 percent subordinated perpetual securities under the programme. The Bank of New York Mellon Singapore Branch was appointed trustee, CDP issuing and paying agent, CDP calculation agent, CDP registrar and CDP transfer agent. The Bank of New York Mellon London Branch was appointed non-CDP issuing and paying agent and non-CDP calculation agent. The Bank of New York Mellon Luxembourg Branch was appointed non-CDP registrar and non-CDP transfer agent. Partners Margaret Chin, Daselin Ang and Sunit Chhabra led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Allen & Gledhill has also acted as transaction counsel to Singtel Group Treasury and Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) on the issue of the US$750 million 2.375 percent notes due 2029, under the updated S$10 billion (US$7.25b) guaranteed euro medium term note programme established by Singtel Treasury. Singtel is the guarantor for the programme. Partners Yeo Wico, Bernie Lee, Sunit Chhabra, Tan Wee Meng and Yeo Boon Kiat led the firm’s team in the transaction.
AZB & Partners is advising Cisco Systems on its merger with 42hertz and the acquisition by Cisco India of the workforce of 42hertz Software India. Partners Gautam Shah, Dushyant Bagga and Sachin Mehta are leading the firm’s team in the transaction, which was signed on August 8, 2019 and is yet to be completed.
AZB & Partners is also advising Cisco Systems on the merger of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Cadmium Acquisition, with Customer Analytics Technologies, which has a subsidiary in India named Customer Insight 360 Technologies. After the merger, Customer Analytics Technologies will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cisco. Partners Gautam Shah, Dushyant Bagga and Sachin Mehta are also leading the firm’s team in the transaction, which was signed on August 23, 2019 and is yet to be completed.
Baker & McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise) has advised Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) on the financing of the acquisition by Asahi Group Holdings of Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) from Anheuser-Busch (AB). Asahi agreed to purchase CUB and certain related Australian businesses from AB for A$16 billion (US$11b), on a cash-free, debt-free enterprise value basis on July 19, 2019, with closing expected to occur in the first quarter of 2020. Gavin Raftery and Shinichiro Kitamura led the firm’s team in the transaction.
J Sagar Associates has advised Investopad founders Rohan Malhotra and Arjun Malhotra on the structuring and incorporation of their Mauritius-based venture capital fund, Good Capital Fund I. The fund will focus on investing in startups, which are building solutions that address users who have come online in India for the first time in the last two years. Through the maiden fund of US$25 million, the founders plan to invest in about half a dozen startups in a year, and provide between US$100,000 to US$2 million in such startups’ seed and Series A financing rounds. Good Capital Fund I has completed its first close of US$12 million from Symphony International Holdings, multiple European family offices and a number of other Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. In addition to advice on the incorporation of the fund, the firm also advised on the incorporation of the investment manager entity and the carry vehicle for Good Capital Fund I. Partner Probir Roy Chowdhury led the firm’s team in the transaction.
J Sagar Associates has also advised Sri Kauvery Medical Care (India) and its promoters on the Rs1.4 billion (US$19.5m) investment received from Lightstone Fund, by way of subscription to securities issued by the company. The company has been operating the “Kauvery Hospital” chain of multi-specialty hospitals for over two decades in Tamil Nadu. A key condition to the investment was that the company and its affiliates will be reorganised, pursuant to a scheme of amalgamation to be approved by the NCLT. Partners Aarthi Sivanandh and Bhavana Alexander led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Khaitan & Co has advised 5paisa Capital on its rights issue of up to approximately 12.74 million equity shares with a face value of Rs10 (US$0.139) each at Rs80 (US$1.113) per equity share, for an amount up to approximately Rs1.02 billion (US$14.2m). Keynote Financial Services acted as the book-running lead manager. Partner Madhur Kohli led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Khaitan & Co has also advised Advent International Corporation on the acquisition of a minority stake in Aditya Birla Capital for a total consideration of Rs21 billion (US$292m), which includes investment by Advent International, Premji Invest and certain promoters of Aditya Birla Capital. Partner Aakash Choubey, supported by partners Rahul Singh, Anisha Chand and Atul Pandey, led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Kirkland & Ellis has represented the founders of Topcast Aviation Supplies, the largest independent aircraft parts distributor in the Asia-Pacific region, on the sale of a majority of Topcast shares to investment funds advised and managed by Permira, a global investment firm. Headquartered in Hong Kong, Topcast has 19 offices across Asia, the Americas and the UK, and connects suppliers with customers in all segments of aviation, including airlines, maintenance, repair and overhaul service providers and original equipment manufacturers. Corporate partners Nicholas Norris and Derek Poon and debt finance partner David Irvine led the firm’s team in the transaction.
Maples Group (Hong Kong) has acted as BVI counsel to Haichuan International Investment on its issuance of US$180 million 7.5 percent bonds due 2021 guaranteed by Jiangsu Fang Yang Group. The issuer is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of the guarantor, which is the second largest investment and financing platform of the Lianyungang Municipal Government. Juno Huang led the firm’s team in the transaction, which closed on June 29, 2019, while King & Wood Mallesons and Allbright Law Offices advised as to English law and Chinese law, respectively. The joint lead managers were advised by Linklaters and Jingtian & Gongcheng as to English law and Chinese law, respectively.
Maples Group (Hong Kong) has also advised Knowbox on a US$150 million series D round funding, led by Alibaba Group, followed by Yunfeng Capital, Bertelsmann Asia Investments and C Ventures and others. Established in 2014, Knowbox targets K-12 education to help students learn by providing personalised exercises through apps. At present, it has entered 100,000 schools across China. Partner Everton Robertson led the firm’s team in the transaction, which closed in May 2019.
RHTLaw Taylor Wessing is advising Singapore-listed food and beverage company BreadTalk Group on its proposed acquisition, through its wholly owned subsidiary Topwin Investment Holdings, of Food Junction Management (FJM). Signed on August 30, 2019, the deal is for S$80 million (US$58m), subject to adjustments. FJM and its wholly owned subsidiaries operate food courts and food and beverage (F&B) outlets in Singapore and Malaysia. Founded as a bakery brand in Singapore in 2000 and listed in Singapore in 2003, BreadTalk is an award-winning F&B group that, among other F&B businesses, operates food courts under the Food Republic and Food Opera brands in Singapore, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Cambodia and Thailand. The proposed acquisition will provide BreadTalk with access to FJM’s existing network of food courts and F&B outlets, allowing the group to both obtain additional revenue streams and benefit from synergies with the group’s existing food court and F&B outlet business. Partners Ch’ng Li-Ling and Yang Eu Jin are leading the firm’s team in the transaction.
Weil, Gotshal & Manges has represented Alibaba Group Holding on the US$2 billion acquisition of Kaola, a Chinese cross-border e-commerce platform, from Nasdaq-listed gaming giant NetEase. After the transaction, Kaola will be integrated into Alibaba’s Tmall. Hong Kong private equity partner Tim Gardner, supported by private equity partner Chris Welty, led the firm’s team in the transaction, which was announced on September 6, 2019.