White & Case's Simmons capture handles groundbreaking Chinese-based LBO

Hong Kong-based foreign investment lawyer Seung Chong has taken White & Case to a new frontier by acting on China's first leveraged buyout (LBO) just one month after he joined the firm from Simmons & Simmons.

White & Case advised Pacific Alliance on the $122.5m (£70.2m) acquisition of Goodbaby Group, one of the world's largest manufacturers of baby strollers and children's products.

Chong told The Lawyer that it was likely there would be more LBOs in China because financing had become more accessible.

"Growing incomes and the changing behaviour of Chinese consumers towards babycare are driving the rapid growth of the sector," he said. "The ability to structure the transaction as a leveraged buyout shows that private equity investors now have a greater set of options when investing in China, and we expect to see more of these transactions taking place in the future."

Allen & Overy acted on behalf of leveraged finance provider Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank, while Sidley Austin Brown & Wood acted for Goodbaby on the transaction.