The secondary listing is the largest stock offering so far in 2019
Five firms have supported the massive Alibaba float in Hong Kong.
After its record-setting float in New York in 2014, the online-commerce giant on Tuesday raised US$11.3bn for this year’s largest stock offering so far. The secondary listing could swell to US$13bn if underwriters exercise their options to buy more shares by mid-December.
Alibaba was counselled on Hong Kong and US laws by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Its Chinese law counsel was Fangda Partners. Cayman Islands law matters were handled by Maples & Calder.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer advised the joint sponsors and underwriters on Hong Kong and US laws. They were counselled on Chinese law matters by King & Wood Mallesons.
The Simpson Thacher team was led by partners Christopher Wong and Daniel Fertig in Hong Kong. Counsel Howie Farn, associates Michelle Leung and Emily Yiu, and registered foreign lawyers Cherrie Zhang and Andrew Laub worked on capital markets matters.
Rajib Chanda, head of the registered funds practice at Simpson Thacher, and associate Nicholas Ridley handled funds aspects. Senior counsel Jonathan Cantor and associate Nicole M. Humphrey worked on tax matters, while partner Tristan Brown and associate Alexander Ellebracht handled executive compensation and employee benefits aspects of the deal.
Simpson Thacher was also Alibaba’s counsel for its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014, the largest in the history of the exchange.
The Fangda team was headed by partner Jeffrey Ding in Beijing and Leo Lou and Doris Tang in Shanghai, reports said. The Maples and Calder team was headed by corporate partners Greg Knowles and Derrick Kan.
The Freshfields team was led by partner and China chair Teresa Ko and corporate partners Calvin Lai and Jason Xu.
