| Baring Private Equity Asia and CAX Holdings - Pera Global stake acquisition | US$42m | |
|---|---|---|
| Synopsis Baring Private Equity Asia (Baring) has invested US$32m in the purchase of existing shares in Pera Global. Baring's subsidiary CAX Holdings has also invested US$10m on a PE financing for Pera Global | ||
| Firm | Client | Role |
| DLA Piper | Pera Global Holdings | International counsel |
| Zhong Lun | Pera Global Holdings | PRC counsel |
| Allen & Overy | Baring Private Equity Asia and CAX Holdings | International counsel |
Long-time client of DLA Piper, Pera Global Holdings, has been the subject of the biggest PE investment in China’s technology industry this year, as well as the largest single PE investment in the history of China’s software sector. Baring has purchased existing shares from AIG, a company which is facing global pressure to divest itself of assets.
Pera Global, formerly part of listed US company ANSYS, is a leader in computer-aided engineering and computer-aided design software development. This transaction will enable the company to further develop R&D capabilities and fund future acquisitions.
This sector is currently experiencing a surge in activity. “This deal confirms the bullish outlook analysts and companies have for China’s software sector. It is a sector which has expanded dramatically in a short period and, as it continues to develop in size and sophistication, will be an increasingly important engine of growth in China’s economy,” said Rocky Lee, partner at DLA Piper.
The Chinese government is strongly encouraging innovation amongst Chinese companies as part of its plan to become an independent innovation economy. “Pera Global actually services a vast majority of the engineering firms in China and I believe the company has a lot of support from the local government and national government to really ramp up innovation and design,” said Lee. “A good portion of [the company’s] revenue is from software services and not just from the licensing of software. This is a pretty interesting model as rarely do we see well positioned software service companies in China – it’s a fairly new [development].”
The software sector is expected to remain steady and fairly attractive for the next couple of years, the TMT sector in general also generating further activity. “A lot of the Chinese companies in the TMT sector have venture money and a lot of them have very big ambitions, so I expect to see a lot [of activity] from those [companies],” said Lee.
DLA Piper is also advising Pera Global on its A-1 filing with the HKSE and its Hong Kong IPO.
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