Allen & Gledhill (A&G) has officially launched a representative office in Shanghai, marking the Singapore firm’s first overseas presence outside Southeast Asia.
Yong Kai Chang, a partner at the firm who specialises in corporate M&A and capital markets with nearly 20 years of experience in mainland China and Hong Kong, heads the Shanghai office.
“We are confident that our new Shanghai representative office will help China businesses navigate the challenging and evolving business and legal landscape across the Asean, and also serve as a bridge between our clients in the Asean and around the world, who are looking to expand their businesses in China,” Yong said.
Allen & Gledhill’s team in Shanghai comprises 10 bilingual lawyers who can advise on a range of practice areas, including corporate and commercial, M&A, international arbitration, private wealth and corporate compliance, the firm told Asia Business Law Journal.
The Shanghai office was officially opened by Edwin Tong, Singapore’s minister for culture, community and youth and second minister for law, who was accompanied by Low Yen Ling, minister of state for the ministry of trade and industry and ministry of culture, community and youth, Allen & Gledhill said.
Liu Weiping, of the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Justice, and Huang Aiwu, the secretary of the party group and director of the Judicial Bureau of Pudong New Area Shanghai, also attended the opening ceremony.
“By establishing a strong presence in Shanghai, we are better positioned to serve both our local and international clients through facilitating seamless cross-border transactions in the region and beyond,” the firm said.
Senior adviser and M&A lawyer Huang Xuhua is among many Allen & Gledhill lawyers under the China practice. Huang is admitted to practice in mainland China, Hong Kong and New York, and joined the Singapore firm in 2018 from King & Wood Mallesons as head of the China practice group.
China’s Ministry of Justice (MOJ) in June last year announced that Allen & Gledhill was among five foreign law firms to receive its approval to open representative offices. UK-based Holman Fenwick Willan and US firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius received approval to set up shop in Shenzhen, while Malaysian practice Ricky Tan & Co and Cyprus firm Areti Charidemou & Associates obtained permission to establish representative offices in Haikou and Chongqing, respectively.
Allen & Gledhill now has a presence in six countries across Asia, including Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia and Vietnam.
