He specialises in all forms of M&A and corporate work. Robert is known for board level advice on corporate finance and governance matters. He has over 30 years’ experience in Asia and led on many of the region’s most high profile transactions. He has a particular reputation in tech, where he advises PayPal, Uber and the CK Hutchison Group, as well as representing global financial institutions such as Zurich, Prudential and Generali.
Robert has won numerous legal accolades and awards throughout his career, including Dealmaker of the Year twice, Managing Partner of the Year, International Law Firm Leader of the Year, International M&A Lawyer of the Year at the Asia Legal Awards and IFLR’s Asia Best Lawyers. He was also included among Asian Legal Business' 'Asia's Top 15 M&A Lawyers.
- Zurich on its landmark entry into the Indian insurance market via an acquisition of a majority stake in India’s Kotak Mahindra General Insurance.
- Sinar Mas on the US$6.5bn merger of its subsidiaries Smartfren (listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange) and PT Smart Telecom, with PT XL Axiata Tbk, an Indonesian subsidiary of the Malaysia-listed Axiata Group.
- CK Hutchison on the landmark US$6bn merger of its Indonesian telecommunications business, Hutchison 3 Indonesia with Indosat Tbk, a subsidiary of Ooredoo Group.
- Uber on its acquisition of HK Taxi.
- IMAX Corporation on its proposed privatisation of the HKEX-listed IMAX China by way of a scheme of arrangement.
- ExpressVPN on the sale of its business to Kape Technologies plc.
- Danone on the unwinding of its relationship with HKEX-listed China Mengniu which involves multiple transactions.
- Boyu Group on its voluntary conditional general cash offer for all of the offer shares in Jinke Smart Services and its case in front of the Hong Kong Takeovers and Mergers Panel.
- PayPal on its acquisition of GoPay, making PayPal the first foreign payments platform licensed to provide online payment services in China.
- Scotiabank on the disposal of its 49% interest in Thanachart Bank to TMB Bank as part of the merger between Thanachart Bank and TMB Bank (Thailand’s largest-ever banking merger).
- Astra International, a subsidiary of Jardine Matheson, on its series investments in Gojek, an Indonesian technology platform.
- Blackstone on its acquisition of a majority stake in Maldivian Air Taxi and Trans Maldivian Airways, both Maldives-based seaplane operators.
- Colgate Palmolive on its acquisition of Laser, the leading toothpaste brand in Myanmar.
- Hutchison Whampoa on its US$5.6bn strategic alliance between AS Watson and Temasek.
- Manulife on its US$1.2bn bancassurance partnership with DBS throughout Singapore, Hong Kong, China and Indonesia.
- Starbucks on the US$1.3bn buy-out of its East China business.
- InterContinental Hotels on its acquisition of Regent Hotels and Resorts.
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