O’Melveny Worldwide

Edwin Kwok is a partner in O’Melveny’s Hong Kong office with extensive experience advising major investment banks, healthcare and TMT issuers, life science and biotech firms, Chinese state-owned enterprises, real estate and property management companies on their initial public offerings, cross-border acquisitions, public takeovers, privatizations, spin-offs, and follow-on offerings of equity and debt securities.

Edwin’s extensive experience includes advising on some of the most significant capital markets and mergers and acquisitions transactions in the Asia region.  He has advised on numerous securities offerings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, public takeovers and listing rules regulated notifiable transactions, some of which were highly complex involving complicated cross border implications. He is especially noted for expertise PRC real estate and property management companies’ listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. He is also deeply experienced with privatizations and takeovers of Hong Kong listed companies.

Edwin has led in building and positioning O’Melveny as the market leader for life science and biotech capital markets transactions following the adoption by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange of Chapter 18A into its listing rules. Edwin led the O’Melveny team for RemeGen’s debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2020, which was the world’s largest biopharma primary listing and IPO of 2020 and recognized as deal of the year for 2020 by China Business Law Journal. Edwin was named to the A-List of China’s 100 Elite Foreign Lawyers by China Business Law Journal in 2022, and to the “The A-List 2023-2024: Growth Drivers” by China Business Law Journal.

Edwin is highly praised by various legal league tables and publications such as Chambers Global, Chambers Greater China Region, Legal500 and IFLR1000. Selected accolades include:

  • “Edwin is very responsive and is always able to give us practical solutions.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2024)
  • “He has always been a technically strong lawyer who follows up on matters closely. He's not just technically strong but also a practical lawyer. He's a very smooth operator in dealing with clients.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2024)
  • “He really knows Hong Kong capital markets, is highly responsive and is both capable and clever. He has a razor-sharp mind and is very thorough. He’s an excellent strategic thinker, a pragmatic lawyer and is very commercially savvy.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2023)
  • “Edwin is a very experienced lawyer who solves sophisticated issues for his clients and gets things done.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2023)
  • “He’s quite resourceful and is quite experienced in our line of work, which is Hong Kong listings. He’s always there when we need advice and is quite proactive in giving his view as well.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2023) “He has the ability to look through the big picture of the entire transaction and applies excellent judgement to it. He is always reassuring and inspires confidence in his clients.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2022)
  • “I can see that the bankers really trust him.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2022)
  • “He stays very calm, no matter how strong the time pressure is, and our team also noted that Edwin has an encyclopedic knowledge of Hong Kong IPOs and can easily point us to any precedent that can shed light on the issues we face.” (Chambers Greater China Region 2022)
  • “Under the guidance of Edwin Kwok and Ke Zhu, the firm has gained most prominence as a result of its ability to provide ‘feasible and effective solutions’ in the context of biotech and life sciences issuances.” (Legal500 2024)
  • “As a brokerage lawyer, Edwin Kwok can give the sponsor clear feedback on key issues. As an issuer’s lawyer, he can also fully protect the interests of the issuer and have an effective relationship with the sponsor.” (Legal500 2022)
  • “Edwin Kwok is very impressive in terms of managing clients and legal matters” (Legal500 2021)
  • “Kwok’s equity capital markets and M&A experience makes him particularly well placed to assist businesses with raising capital and undertaking strategically important investment activities” (Legal500 2018)
  • Recognized as a Highly regarded M&A lawyer by International Financial Law Review (IFLR) in its 2022-2023 “Leading Lawyer” edition

Before joining O’Melveny, Edwin was a partner in the Hong Kong office of another international law firm and had been seconded to China Unicom and N.M. Rothschild & Sons (Hong Kong) Limited as in-house legal counsel.

 

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ECM Transactions

  • OrbusNeich Medical Group in its US$62 million IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Sipai Health Technology Co., Ltd. in its IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Haitong International Capital Limited and CCB International Capital Limited as joint sponsors, and other underwriters in the IPO and listing of Huafang Group Inc. on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • CICC and China Industrial Securities in the US$64 million top-up share placement and subscription for C&D International
  • ABCI Captial Limited, CICC Hong Kong Securities Limited and other underwriters in the H-share IPO of Lushang Life Services Co., Ltd (2376.HK) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • RemeGen in its approximately US$412 million A-share IPO and listing on the Sci-Tech Innovation Board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange
  • Gushengtang Holdings Limited in its US$104 million IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • OrbusNeich Medical Group in its US$200 million Series A and A-2 Fundraising Rounds
  • CCB International Capital Limited as sole sponsor and other underwriters in the approximately US$85 million IPO and listing of Kangqiao Service Group Limited on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Brii Biosciences Limited in its US$318 million IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • BNP Paribas, China Construction Bank International, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China International and other underwriters in the spin-off and approximately US$126 million listing of Central China Management Company Limited on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • RemeGen Co., Ltd. in its US$515 million IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • J.P. Morgan, BofA Securities, CICC and Haitong International as joint sponsors and other underwriters in the approximately US$1.67 billion secondary listing of GDS Holdings Limited on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • First Shanghai Capital as sole sponsor and First Shanghai Securities as sole global coordinator, and other underwriters in the US$71 million IPO and listing of Chen Lin Education Group on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Pharmaron in its approximately US$588 million dual primary listing and H share offering in Hong Kong
  • Fidelity, major shareholder of Innovent Biologics, in Innovent Biologics’ US$412 million IPO on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Viva Biotech (1873.HK) in its HK$1,521.5 million (approximately US$194 million) IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Dexin China Holdings Company Limited (2019.HK) in its US$190 million IPO and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Hua Medicine (2552.HK) in its US$110 million Chapter 18A biotech company IPO sponsored by Goldman Sachs and CLSA Limited
  • China Securities (International) Corporate Finance Company Limited, as the sole sponsor and lead underwriter, in the US$133 million IPO of mobile game publisher FingerTango Inc.(6860.HK) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • China Securities (International) Corporate Finance Company Limited, as the sole sponsor and lead underwriter, in the US$40 million IPO of mobile game publisher Digital Hollywood Interactive Limited (2022.HK) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Bank of Tianjin in its US$948 million global offering and IPO on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • State-owned shipping giant China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company, and China COSCO Holdings Company Limited and its associated companies in the landmark restructuring involving both China COSCO Group and China Shipping Group, comprising a series of asset acquisitions and disposals among China COSCO, China Shipping and their respective subsidiaries
  • CICC, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, China Merchants Securities and other underwriters in the US$925 million global offering and listing of H shares of Red Star Macalline Group Corporation Ltd., the largest home improvement and furnishings shopping mall operator in China, on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • BOCOM International, ABCI, Qilu International, and other underwriters in the US$454 million global offering and listing of the H-shares of Guolian Securities Co. Ltd., one of the leading integrated securities firms in China, on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • WH Group, the world’s largest pork company with global leadership across key segments of the industry value chain, including packaged meats, fresh pork, and hog production, in its US$2.36 billion global offering and IPO
  • Haitong International, J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Citigroup and UBS, and other underwriters including HSBC, Nomura, Standard Chartered, and BOCOM International, in the US$1.68 billion H share IPO of Haitong Securities Co. Ltd
  • China Unicom in its US$23 billion merger with China Netcom by way of a scheme of arrangement
  • BOCOM International, Morgan Stanley, Standard Chartered, BOCI Asia, CCB International, and other underwriters in the US$87 million global offering and IPO of New Century Real Estate Investment Trust, the first solely China-based hotel REIT listing in the world
  • J.P. Morgan, as the sole sponsor and financial adviser, in China Daye Non-Ferrous Metals Mining Limited’s deemed new listing and reverse takeover resulting from its RMB5.8 billion acquisition of Prosper Well Group Limited
  • Citigroup, UBS, and CIMB Securities Limited in the US$214 million global offering and IPO of Fu Shou Yuan International Group Limited, one of the largest providers of death care services in the PRC
  • BOCOM International, Macquarie, BOCI Asia, Haitong International, ICBC International, and ABCI in the US$202 million global offering and IPO of Logan Property Holdings Company Limited
  • Morgan Stanley, CITIC Securities Corporate Finance, ICBC International, and other underwriters in the US$130 million global offering and IPO of China VAST Industrial Urban Development Company Limited
  • CICC and GF Securities in the US$172 million global offering and IPO of H shares of China Aluminum International Engineering Corporation Limited
  • Morgan Stanley in the US$180 million global offering of Goodbaby International Holdings Limited
  • CICC, Deutsche Bank AG, Hong Kong Branch, Guotai Junan Securities and CLSA Limited, as the placing agents, in the HK$4.48 billion private H share placement of Sinopec Oilfield Service Corporation (SSC) on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
  • Macquarie, HSBC and Nomura in the US$200 million global offering and IPO of Top Spring International Holdings, which was the first-ever listing to provide a mixed-media offering in Hong Kong
  • BOCOM International, Haitong International, KGI Capital, and GF Securities in the US$78 million global offering and spin-off listing of China New City Commercial Development Limited from Zhong An Real Estate
  • Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and HSBC in the spin-off and listing by introduction of Swire Properties
  • Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley in the HK$2.56 billion spin-off and global offering of Pou Sheng International (Holdings) Limited
  • Citigroup, JP Morgan, and Rothschild in the global offering and IPO of Trinity Limited
  • ASMC in its HK$700 million H share global offering and IPO sponsored by Goldman Sachs and BOCI

Corporate and M&A Transactions

  • China VAST Industrial Urban Development (6166.HK) and its controlling shareholder, Profit East Limited, in the US$285 million all-cash take private proposal by China Jinmao Holdings Group Limited (817.HK)
  • Central China Real Estate and its Controlling Shareholder in US$83 Million Share Sale
  • RemeGen in its exclusive worldwide license agreement with Seagen Inc.
  • China VAST Industrial Urban Development Company Limited and its major shareholder in the sale of approximately US$191 million of shares to China Jinmao Holdings Group Limited, and the issuance of 6% convertible bonds of US$123 million with a 36 month maturity date to China Jinmao
  • BOCOM International (Asia) Limited, as financial advisor to Qingdao Holdings International Limited (499.HK), in the company’s approximately US$305 million extreme very substantial acquisition of an 81.91% stake in Qingdao Rural Construction Finance Leasing
  • The buyer consortium in its US$300 million privatization offer for all the H shares of HK listed Shandong Luoxin Pharmaceutical by way of a voluntary conditional cash offer
  • Central China Real Estate Limited in its $132 million issuance of new shares to Joy Bright Investments Limited and third party subscribers by way of a whitewash waiver
  • Beijing Baoying Chuangfu Investment in its mandatory general offer for the outstanding H shares and domestic shares of Northeast Tiger Pharmaceutical (now known as Baytacare Pharmaceutical)
  • Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and China Merchants Securities in connection with the deemed new listing and placing of new shares by Tonic Industries (now known as China Merchants Land Limited)
  • Famous Commercial, a subsidiary of Gemdale (Asia) Investment Limited, in its acquisition of a stake in Hong Kong-listed Frasers Property (China) Limited (now known as Gemdale Properties and Investment Corporation Limited) for HK$1.65 billion by way of a mandatory general offer
  • Metro Victory Holdings in its mandatory general offer for the outstanding shares of Cinderella Media Group Limited (now known as KK Culture Holdings Limited)
  • Unitech Enterprises Group in its HK$258 million acquisition of approximately 61.56% of the entire issued share capital of Ford Glory Group (now known as Hua Long Jin Kong Company Limited) by way of a mandatory general offer
  • Nat-Ace Pharmaceutical in its approximately US$35 million acquisition of 52.79% of Perception Digital Holdings (now known as HongDa Financial Holding) by way of a mandatory general offer
  • Ever Billion Group Limited in its HK$765 million proposed acquisition of CASH Financial Services Group from Celestial Asia Securities Holdings Limited
  • China Oriental in its defense of a hostile takeover from Smart Triumph Corporation and its subsequent strategic alliance with ArcelorMittal
  • China Unicom in the US$6.3 billion sale of its CDMA business to China Telecom
  • Famous Commercial Ltd., a subsidiary of Shanghai-listed Gemdale Corporation, in its US$212 million acquisition of Frasers Property (China) Limited
  • Shunfeng Photovoltaic, as its US special counsel, in the US$482 million very substantial acquisition of the entire equity interests of Wuxi Suntech Power from its PRC administrator
  • Pacific Century CyberWorks, the real estate unit of PCCW Limited, in its proposed US$333 million privatization
  • G-Resouces Group in its fund raising in relation to the acquisition of the Martabe gold mining project
  • Tencent Holdings in its US$300 million investment in Digital Sky Technologies, one of the first-ever major outbound investment by an Internet company in China
  • Fortis Bank in its US$453 million acquisition of Pacific Century Insurance
  • Fosun International in various of its acquisitions of and investments into companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange

Languages

  • English
  • Cantonese
  • Mandarin

Admissions

Bar Admissions

  • Hong Kong
  • England & Wales (non-practising)

Education

  • University of Cambridge, LL.M.
  • University of Hong Kong, LL.B. (First Class Honours), P.C.LL.

Honors & Awards

  • Named to the “Growth Drivers” category of China’s A-List Foreign Lawyers by China Business Law Journal, 2023-2024
  • Named to the “A-List” of China’s 100 Elite Foreign Lawyers by China Business Law Journal (2022)
  • Recognized by Chambers Asia-Pacific and Chambers Greater China Region in the practice area of Capital Markets: Equity (International Firms) - China (2022-2024)
  • Recognized by The Legal 500 Greater China (2024) for Hong Kong, Capital Markets (Equity); and Hong Kong, Corporate (Including M&A)
  • Recognized by Chambers Global for Capital Markets: Equity (International Firms) in China (2022-2023)