Beijing based Jingtian & Gongcheng has scored a key advisory role in Focus Media Holding’s backdoor listing in Shenzhen. The restructure values the company at more than $7 billion, filings showed.
Jiangsu Hongda, a silicon rubber manufacturer listed on Shenzhen Stock Exclange said it would pay $7.4 billion for Focus Media.
A Jingtian & Gongcheng team including partners Zhang Zhiqiang, Xu Pengfei and Zhang Rongsheng has provided legal advice for the restructure, according to the filing by Jiangsu Hongda.
Focus Media, an advertising company that used to be listed on the NASDAQ, was taken private in 2013 for $3.7 billion by a Carlyle Group led consortium in China's biggest-ever leveraged buyout, after it was attacked by Western short sellers. The planned backdoor listing represents a doubling in value for the display advertising company.
The deal also sets a precedent for Chinese firms listed abroad that are keen to come back home, attracted by a long and sharp rally for mainland stock markets that has seen them more than double in value over the past year.
Reverse takeovers generally undergo less scrutiny than initial public offerings but the plan will require approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission and other regulators.
