Five experts have boosted Ashurst’s international projects group in Japan and the M&A team at its formal law alliance in Singapore, ADTLaw.
In Singapore, ADTLaw has hired an M&A specialist team from Allen & Gledhill led by Chiam Tao Koon along with Choo Yi Ming, Ko Xiaozheng and George Kho.
Chiam, who was appointed as the head of M&A for Southeast Asia, was a partner at Allen & Gledhill for more than 14 years since 2008. He is a seasoned M&A practitioner with more than 20 years of experience, and specialises in deal structuring and execution for cross-border private equity transactions.
Asia Development Bank (ADB) counsel and project expert Tom Wilson has moved from Manila to join Ashurst in Tokyo to become a partner, subject to Japan’s gaikokuho jimu bengoshi (registered foreign lawyer) application.
Wilson, who will join Ashurt’s international projects group as special counsel, has more than 14 years of complex, cross-border transactional project development and finance experience in the Asia-Pacific. He has advised governments on public-private partnerships (PPPs) across a broad range of sectors in countries relatively new to PPP modalities, including Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Palau, Pakistan and the Philippines.
During his time with ADB, Wilson led the review and amendment of PPP laws and supporting regulations in a number of jurisdictions. Prior to that, he worked for international law firms in Tokyo, Singapore and Jakarta, where he acted for governments, project sponsors, financiers, investors and liquefied natural gas buyers across all stages of project development and financing.
In Singapore, Choo and Ko joined as directors at the corporate practice, and Kho is an associate director. Choo focuses on M&A for sovereign wealth funds and large-cap corporates in joint ventures and acquisitions, while Ko has extensive experience in various industries, acting for private equity funds on transactions throughout Southeast Asia. Kho regularly advises startups and venture capital firms in various sectors.
