Davis Polk & Wardwell, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton have secured key advisory roles in a go-private agreement for E-House (China) Holdings, a leading real estate services company headquartered in Shanghai.
Led by partners Julie Gao, Michael Gisser and Haiping Li, Skadden is serving as U.S. legal counsel to the buyer group headed by Xin Zhou, E-House’s CEO and co-chairman of the board of directors. The consortium also includes Kanrich Holdings, On Chance Inc. and Jun Heng Investment.
Davis Polk is advising the special committee of E-House’s board of directors, with Hong Kong-based partner Miranda So overseeing the deal. Meanwhile, Cleary Gottlieb is serving as legal counsel to Duff & Phelps, the special committee’s financial advisor.
Cayman Islands law firms Travers Thorp Alberga and Walkers are also involved in the transaction, representing the investors and E-House’s special committee, respectively..
The investment group plans to finance the merger through a combination of a $350 million committed loan facility and a cash consideration equal to $6.85 per ordinary share and American Depository Share (ADS) of E-House.
The go-private deal is expected to be completed in the second half of 2016. E-House, which has a 70 percent stake in property portal Leju, is the latest in a string of U.S-listed Chinese companies that have gone back and sought domestic listings for a higher valuation – a move that is perceived to be better understood by Chinese investors.
