Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft, Beijing Sunland Law Firm, Goodwin Procter and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom have scored key advisory roles in a $ 1.1 billion investment in China’s Smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp by a number of investors.
The investment was led by All-Stars Investment Ltd, a fund run by a Morgan Stanley analyst-turned-investor Richard Ji. The investors also included the prominent Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte and Russian tech fund DST Global.
A Cadwalader team led by the firm’s Asia managing partner Rocky Lee advised All-Stars on the deal, while Ogier served as the leading investor’s offshore counsel. DST Global was represented by Goodwin Procter, with Skadden advising GIC.
Beijing Sunland Law Firm acted as Xiaomi’s PRC counsel, while Travers, Thorp & Alberga served as the company’s offshore counsel.
As the world’s third-largest Smartphone vendor, Xiaomi’s valuation has skyrocketed in the four years since it was founded by Chief Executive Lei Jun, reflecting investors’ belief that it will grow into a global powerhouse despite signs it is encountering intellectual property challenges outside its home country China.
This round of fund raising would value the Smartphone maker at over $45 billion, Reuters reported.