Tracy Wut, head of the M&A practice in Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia at Baker McKenzie, has been promoted as managing partner for a three-year term.
In her new role, Wut, who has been with the firm for 28 years and promoted to partner 17 years ago, will oversee the Hong Kong and mainland China offices as well as lead the M&A practice in the city.
“Persistently high inflation, interest rates and market volatility have weighed on dealmaking globally, and this challenging environment has spurred more companies to shed non-core assets, providing opportunities for savvy buyers to use M&A to create value or boost their operational resilience,” Wut told Asia Business Law Journal.
“Dealmaking in Southeast Asia has stayed buoyant, driven in part by domestic consolidation in sectors such as financial institutions and the telecoms, media and technology sector.”
With the resurgence of China’s economy, Wut observed that outbound deals involving Chinese companies may pick up later this year, albeit likely at a moderate pace.
“As China targets a new path to economic growth that focuses on innovation, technology and consumption, many of the new economy companies are set to play a more pivotal role in stimulating economic growth in the region and internationally, given imperatives such as digitalisation and net-zero transition,” Wut added.
Wut is an expert in M&A and has a broad range of experience in corporate and commercial matters on investments in China, with clients from many leading local and multinational companies. Her expertise includes international trade, joint ventures, private equity, the healthcare industry, corporate reorganisations, retail and manufacturing.
She is co-head of the Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Industry Group in Hong Kong and China. Wut also chairs the Corporate Social Responsibility and Pro-Bono Committees in Hong Kong and serves on the Global and Asia-Pacific committees of the Healthcare and Life Sciences Industry Group.
Wut advised Gaw Capital Partners and a consortium of institutional investors in the HKD9.84 billion acquisition of the CityPlaza One office building in Hong Kong.
