Raising a glass to the crème de la crème

September 04, 2010 | BY

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Finally, the spectre of the great financial crisis has faded. In the past year deal flow has swelled, with transactions that had been slowly ripening through…

Finally, the spectre of the great financial crisis has faded. In the past year deal flow has swelled, with transactions that had been slowly ripening through a stalled pipeline finally coming to market, and others being quickly birthed by optimistic market sentiment.

Though China remained resilient in the aftermath of the Lehman debacle, it still feels good to cheer about Asia's reinvigorated health as mirrored in the uptick of activity with Chinese players. In particular, those deals that were mired with complexity, they should be celebrated because they set precedents and re-instilled confidence that the tough, the tricky, the new and the previously only-imagined were still possible.

This month we applaud those deals and the law firms that had the guts to believe in them and the finesse to bring them to fruition. Our annual CLP awards will be held in Beijing on September 16, and as in years past, we've narrowed down our selections based on innovation and excellence. For a closer look at the standout deals of the last 12 months, please see page 26.

In one example, China's fledgling enterprise bankruptcy law was first notably tested when steel giant FerroChina fell victim to the global crisis. What resulted from the nearly year-long wind up were decisions from a PRC court that set precedent for how foreign creditors would be treated in future insolvencies. You can read more about this trail-blazing case on page 33 in our CLP Awards 2010 finalists showcase or check out some bankruptcy advice from Herbert Smith and Jun He Law Offices starting on page 62.

When China Minsheng Bank became the first financial institution to launch its IPO in the wake of the crisis in what ultimately became the largest Asia IPO in 2009, it set the “cautiously optimistic” mood and paved the way for other Asia-based entities to price with confidence and go to market. Since then, China's capital markets have stirred to life and are busier than ever before with more than one-third of new listings this year coming from PRC companies. A testament to the perceived longevity and stability of this resurrection was when the last of the great state lenders went public on July 6 with the Agricultural Bank of China raising US$19.2 billion in dual offerings in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

It's been a fruitful year with eyes turning to China more and more since it emerged from the crisis relatively unscathed, and its robust deal flow now assuredly leads the way. It will only get better, I reckon.

As always I welcome your thoughts, opinions and questions, and I look forward to meeting many of you in Beijing.

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