DLA Piper announced today that the firm represented Nasdaq-listed AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc. in its merger with Linkage Technologies International Holdings Limited, which closed on July 1st. The transaction, a cash and stock deal valued at approximately US$733 million, creates one of the largest software companies in China.
AsiaInfo is a leading provider of software solutions and IT services for the telecommunications industry in China. The company has played a significant role in the construction of the national backbones and access networks for China’s major national telecom carriers.
With the acquisition of Linkage Technologies, the combined company, renamed “AsiaInfo-Linkage,” will have a market capitalization of approximately US$1.7 billion and more than 8,000 employees.
DLA Piper and Han Kun Law Office acted as legal advisors to AsiaInfo in the transaction; Bank of America Merrill Lynch served as AsiaInfo’s financial advisor. Barclays Capital served as financial advisor, and Latham & Watkins and Global Law Office served as legal advisors, to Linkage.
The DLA Piper team advising AsiaInfo was led by Matt Adler and Steve Liu, partners in the firm’s Corporate and Finance practice. Other members of the DLA Piper team included Andrew Ledbetter and Kristi Darnell-Weichelt, associates in the firm’s Seattle office; and Wang Hongling, an associate in the firm’s Beijing office.
“AsiaInfo’s merger with Linkage Technologies is the one of the largest M&A transactions ever in China’s technology sector and creates one of China’s largest software companies,” said Matt Adler, a partner at DLA Piper in Seattle. “We believe consolidation will continue in the sector as China’s economy continues to focus on innovation.”
“DLA Piper is proud to have represented AsiaInfo in this marquee transaction. The firm’s global platform and experience in China add critical value for clients executing complex cross-border acquisitions,” said Steven Liu, a partner at DLA Piper in Beijing.
DLA Piper’s Corporate and Finance Group advises many of the world’s leading and emerging companies, as well as financial institutions and buyout and investment funds, on mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, public and private equity and debt offerings, venture capital and private equity investments, and other transactional matters. Last year, DLA Piper advised clients on more than 180 Merger & Acquisition (M&A) transactions globally, making the firm the 3rd most active legal advisor on US. M&A deals and the 4th most active in global M&A deals, as measured by MergerMarket, an independent M&A intelligence service.
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