SRZ Hosts Asia Investment Series Roundtable

SRZ will host a roundtable, “Developments in Outbound China M&A: Opportunities for U.S. Private Equity Owners,” as part of the firm’s Asia Investment Series. Being held today in New York, the roundtable discussion features SRZ lawyers and industry leaders covering current opportunities in outbound investments from China. The event is by invitation only.

Specific topics at the roundtable will include the drivers behind the increase in Chinese outbound investments; opportunities for private equity owners, especially in how to address PRC acquirers; recent economic developments in China; and tax considerations in structuring deals, among others.

Stuart D. Freedman, SRZ M&A partner and co-chair of the firm’s Business Transactions Group, and Peter Jonathan Halasz, SRZ M&A and investment management partner, are spearheading the event. The guest speakers are Jack Perkowski, founder and managing partner of JFP Holdings; Lily Kang, tax partner at KPMG Advisory (China) Limited, who is currently on secondment to KPMG LLP in New York City and heads the China Tax Center of Excellence; and James O’Neill, managing director at JFP Holdings.

“China’s increasing investment in the U.S. is presenting some exciting opportunities for U.S. private equity owners, and we are pleased to present a discussion focused on issues surrounding those deals,” commented Mr. Freedman, whose practice has a substantial international component, as he regularly advises on transactions involving China, India, Indonesia and Australia, among other countries.

“At today’s roundtable, we will discuss what private equity sellers can expect as well as the challenges they may face in these complex transactions,” added Mr. Halasz, who is involved in M&A transactions worldwide, including a focus on cross-border transactions occurring in China as well as other Asian countries.

SRZ lawyers are actively engaged in cross-border transactions with China on a wide breadth of transactions, including joint ventures, foreign direct investments, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, real estate and the establishment of inbound and outbound investment funds and vehicles.

“As more and more private equity owners turn their attention to China, our lawyers are strategically guiding clients who are evaluating these emerging opportunities,” commented Alan S. Waldenberg, chair of the firm’s Executive Committee and chair of the Tax Group, who regularly represents clients in M&A transactions, restructurings and workouts in the United States, Europe and Asia. As the preeminent law firm for alternative investment managers, SRZ represents prominent private equity firms in their investments and dispositions worldwide.

About the Guest Speakers

Jack Perkowski is a Wall Street veteran and an expert on doing business in China. In 2009, he founded JFP Holdings, which offers its clients a range of advisory services to help them develop and implement their strategies in China. They assist with identifying suitable business partners in China, as well as providing transactional services that assist in capital raising and cross-border mergers and acquisitions. For Chinese clients, JFP Holdings provides access to overseas sources of capital and helps to identify overseas acquisition candidates. Mr. Perkowski had founded in 1994 ASIMCO Technologies, a major industrial enterprise in China’s automotive industry, which he built and ran for 15 years before it was sold to Bain Capital LLC in 2009.

Lily Kang has extensive experience providing multinational corporations and private equity funds with tax due diligence support and tax advisory consulting services for structuring their investment into and outside of China, including contractual review of purchase and sale agreements and implementation of M&A restructurings. Ms. Kang is also actively involved in clients’ operations in China, providing tax advisory and compliance assistance to help clients enhance their tax position while addressing their tax exposure.

James O’Neill has been involved in international investment banking and private equity activities for over 25 years. He has been actively involved in China-focused investment activities since 1995, including 10 years serving on the board of directors and investment committee of ASIMCO. Prior to joining JFP Holdings, he was the founder and managing partner of Jin Niu Investment Management Co., Ltd., a Beijing-based advisory firm that develops and executes long-term value-creation strategies for both Chinese and U.S. companies.