Private Equity
With highly regarded practices in both private equity funds and private equity transactions, we provide clients with an integrated service in all aspects of the private equity market. We provide advice across the entire life cycle of every fund and every investment, from fund formation and capitalisation of investment vehicles, through to public and private mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, group restructurings, re-financings, secured lending and transactional due diligence.
The private equity industry is rapidly changing and we are well-placed to keep up with the changes given that we act for many of the world’s largest and most successful buyout firms. Clients retain us again and again for our deep understanding of their needs, issues and goals. Our Private Equity team is one of the most highly regarded international teams practicing in this field and we are committed to delivering the highest possible level of customer service.
Clients rely on us to ensure they make the right deals on the right terms, thoughtfully assess risk, make appropriate trade-offs, and respond quickly to meet business demands. Our global presence enables us to provide comprehensive, multi-jurisdictional legal advice at the times most critical to our clients.
Our unparalleled geographic footprint, coupled with our commitment to both mid-market and multi-billion-dollar deals, provides us with a global perspective on structuring and executing private equity mandates. We have offices in ten highly regarded, well-regulated global locations and practise the laws of eight jurisdictions. Our office locations include the key international jurisdictions of Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, Mauritius, and the Seychelles, as well as the international financial centres of Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Formation work
- Establishing and structuring private equity, venture capital, real estate and other types of closed-ended investment funds, general partners, carried interest partners, management and advisory vehicles across our specified jurisdictions
- Sharia-compliant and “hybrid” investment vehicles
- Preparing primary fund documentation
- Reviewing debt and equity funding documentation
- Advising managers and sponsors on legal and regulatory issues
- Working with external legal and product development teams on new funds and structured products
- Provision of legal opinions to general partners and investors
- Primary and secondary listings of closed-end investment funds on leading stock exchanges
Transactional work
- Capital raising; subsequent closings
- Public and private mergers & acquisitions and private equity-backed buyout deals
- Secondary market acquisitions and disposals
- Add-ons, spin-offs and restructuring of portfolio companies
- Acquisition and operational financing (including high-yield bonds)
- Minority investment transactions and liquidity events
- Joint venture and growth capital transactions
- Co-investment transactions and liquidity events
Governance and Disputes
We advise advice on all aspects of corporate governance including providing counsel to boards of directors and executive officers regarding, significant transactions, takeover readiness, disclosure issues and internal investigations.
Life Cycle Advisory Service
Our private equity team provides advice to managers and sponsors throughout a private equity cycle, beginning with an analysis of the investment opportunity and target investor base. This is followed by advice regarding domicile selection and design of the private equity structure and ultimately product implementation. We are able to provide a holistic solution throughout the life cycle process or a tailored solution at selected stages.
We also advise on all post-launch legal and operational issues.
