Goodwin opens its second Asian shop in Singapore with the relocation of Hong Kong-based private investment funds partner Gregory Barclay to lead the new office to assist clients in raising, deploying and lending capital in the region.
“There has been a lot of successful tech companies in the past few years in Southeast Asia and India, and success begets more success, so I think there is an ecosystem for these companies to thrive,” Barclay told Asia Business Law Journal.
Barclay said many clients pointed out that the stricter regulatory landscape for investment in the US and Europe has created opportunities for companies, which have been traditionally investing in China and North Asia, to see more opportunities in Southeast Asia.
His practice focuses on the formation of and investment into private equity, venture capital, credit, infrastructure, real estate and hybrid funds, as well as other capital-structuring matters.
“The new office is an extension of what we’ve been doing for 14 years or so in Hong Kong, so it’s really around the key practice areas of private equity, technology, and M&A, as the primary ones,” said Barclay.
Southeast Asia, according to Barclay, is an attractive and growing market that creates the right macro environment for tech and other startup companies to grow. Many investment opportunities are available in Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia, while Singapore is becoming an increasing hub for raising and structuring capital.
“Singapore generally has put in place the things you need to have a thriving private equity and venture capital industry,” he said.
“We have a significant team in Hong Kong and we’re not here just to be a small team. We will be growing in the coming months and it’s important for us to have the right team in place to grow our business and follow the opportunities alongside our clients that are seeing opportunities here, as we have a number of clients who are already in or operating from Singapore across Southeast Asia and India.”
In running the new office, Barclay brought with him Hong Kong-based partner Abhishek Krishnan and counsel Ananth Lakshman.
Both have experience in broad-based transactional practice with an emphasis on advising companies, sponsors and promoters in cross-border M&A, buyouts, early and late-stage venture capital and growth equity investments, private investment in public equities, joint ventures and other corporate transactions. The two Asian offices will work together seamlessly to meet the needs of the firm’s clients.
