"The team are able to respond and turn around within a very tight closing timeline."  Client testimonial in Chambers and Partners 2024

"Howse Williams provides solutions on various matters and is highly responsive."  Client testimonial in Chambers and Partners 2024

Our full service Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) team regularly advises clients in Asia on public and private M&A transactions, both domestic and cross-border. With our in-depth experience and understanding of local market practices, our team advises on complex and challenging regulatory and transactional issues. By working closely with our Capital Markets and Banking & Finance teams, we are able to customise financing and investment solutions for businesses planning to expand. We serve an extensive range of clients that include local and international companies in a variety of fields, banks, private equity, venture capital and other types of investment funds, partnerships and private individuals.

Our diverse range of practice areas include public takeovers, private mergers and acquisitions, direct investments, private equity and venture capital investments, privatisations, schemes of arrangement, de-listings, domestic and cross-border joint ventures and corporate restructurings and reorganisations.

Key areas of practice include: 

• Mergers and acquisitions encompassing both public and private transactions and a significant amount of cross-border transactions. We have experience in the full spectrum of transactions including, mergers, stock and asset sales (including distressed asset transactions), recapitalisations, tender offers and joint ventures. In addition to closing deals, we advise clients on corporate governance, fiduciary duties, financing and other related issues.
• Direct investment, private equity and venture capital including leveraged buyouts, management buyouts, spin-offs, venture capital financings, recapitalisations and dispositions, representing investment companies and multi-national corporations with direct investment divisions.
• Privatisations / de-listings. We advise both offerors and listed companies on the privatisation of listed corporations by way of general offers or schemes of arrangement and the subsequent de-listings.
• Corporate restructuring/reorganisation. We advise a diverse and global clientele on complex corporate restructurings and workouts ranging from recapitalisations, privatisations and divestitures to asset disposals.

Headed by one of our founding partners who has a wealth of experience in undertaking complicated domestic and cross-border M&A transactions, our experienced M&A team is ranked in leading legal directories such as Asia Pacific Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners Asia Pacific. We have been commended as having "a well-established reputation in public and private M&A transactions, as well as private equity and venture capital deals".

Key Partners:

Chris Williams; Brian Ho; Chia Ching Tan; Christopher Yu; Heidi Lee; Veronica Chow; Anthony Chan; Yvonne Zhang