The head of Davis Polk & Wardwell’s Beijing office will be stepping down from the helm of the US firm this year to launch his political career with Singapore’s largest opposition party – the Worker’s Party – in the upcoming Singapore general elections to be held on 7 May 2011.
Chen who is currently the managing partner of firm’s Beijing office, has practiced in the New York office since 1992, the Hong Kong office since 1999 and the Beijing office since 2007.
Colleague and fellow Hong Kong-based Davis Polk partner William Barron confirmed with ALB that Chen has not officially resigned yet. “Show Mao has indicated last year that he was planning to step down from the firm this year and would be planning to pursue other interests in public service,” Barron said. “Show Mao has been my partner for many years and it was excellent working with him.”
Both Chen and Barron had worked on numerous deals together, including the US$21bn ICBC IPO in 2006 – the largest-ever IPO in the world at the time of its listing.
Chen will be contesting Yeo in the Aljunied Group Representative Constituency (GRC) – the most hotly contested GRC in this year’s elections due to a major re-drawing of electoral boundaries that will constitute almost 20,000 votes. Yeo has served as a member of parliament representing Aljunied GRC since 1988.
In capital markets, Chen has advised the Agricultural Bank of China on its recent $22 billion IPO – the largest by an Asian issuer, and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) on its $21 billion IPO, which is the second-largest IPO ever, and the first global offering that involved a concurrent listing in China.
Chen’s work in M&A includes ICBC on the largest-ever cross-border investment in a Chinese financial institution.
According to local boutique firm Aequitas partner Anil Changaroth, Singapore’s prodigal talents that have returned to the country “is of great benefit to Singapore” and brings a fresh and interesting perspective to the table.
“There was a time when the talk of the town was globalization and exporting our talents – the fact that our talents have come back to Singapore – it can only be positive as they see the world in a different light.”
His only reservations raised were the limited number years that Chen had spent in Singapore, in juxtaposition to his time abroad. “Even with the world’s knowledge in your hands, one really has to apply it specifically to the context of this country – and applying it in Singapore is a different ball game altogether” Changaroth said.
WongPartnership senior partner Alvin Yeo is also running in the current elections as a member of parliament representing the Chua Chu Kang GRC.
Other electoral candidates for the People’s Action Party include Allen & Gledhill partner Edwin Tong (Moulmein-Kallang GRC), Allen & Gledhill senior counsel and partner Hri Kumar Nair (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC), Drew & Napier director Sin Boon Ann (Tampines GRC), Ramdas & Wong lawyer Ellen Lee and Norton Rose arbitration specialist Vikram Nair (Sembawang GRC).ALB
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