Joseph W.K. Chan Partner Shanghai  86.21.2322.9328 86.21.5306.8966 Fax Vcard

JOSEPH W.K. CHAN is a seasoned corporate lawyer with over a decade of experience representing sellers, strategic buyers, private equity funds, venture funds, portfolio companies, issuers, underwriters, financial advisors, lenders and trustees in a variety of sophisticated transactions. Prior to joining Sidley, Mr. Chan served as the managing partner of the Shanghai office and co-head of the China practice of another U.S.-based international law firm.

Mr. Chan has worked on over US$42 billion of private equity, venture capital, capital markets, mergers, acquisitions, and other strategic transactions including stock-for-stock mergers, cash mergers, stock purchases, asset purchases, tender offers, joint ventures, strategic alliances and divestitures. Mr. Chan’s practice in China encompasses a wide range of corporate securities transactions, including private equity fund formation (both offshore and RMB funds), portfolio investments, M&A, and a variety of going-public transactions. Mr. Chan is skilled in advising on deal structure and regulatory complexity. He has been involved in a number of initial public offerings of leading companies in Hong Kong and the U.S.

Mr. Chan frequently speaks at leading private equity and venture capital conferences in China and the U.S. Mr. Chan’s views on a variety of topics have been quoted or published in a number of leading journals and publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review China, Bloomberg Businessweek, Asia Asset Management, Asian Venture Capital Journal, Asia M&A, FinanceAsia, The Deal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post, CEIBS Business Review, SCMP, Caijing, China Venture and Top Capital. He was a monthly legal columnist for Top Capital, a leading private equity journal in China. In addition, Mr. Chan often lectures at the business and law faculties of leading universities, such as Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, UCLA, NUS, NYU, CEIBS, Fudan and Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Mr. Chan is a founding member and currently serves on the Shanghai Board of Directors of the Asia America MultiTechnology Association (AAMA). Until recently, he served on the Shanghai Advisory Board of ChinaSF, advising the mayor of San Francisco on bilateral business relations. Mr. Chan also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Dulwich College Shanghai, the Shanghai affiliate of the prestigious school in England.

Mr. Chan was a judicial intern to the Honorable Royce C. Lambert, United States District Court for the District of Columbia, in 1993. Over the years, Mr. Chan has participated in a number of committees of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association, including Commercial Financial Services, Corporate Compliance, Developments in Business Financing, Negotiated Acquisitions, Trust Indentures and Indenture Trustees, and Venture Capital & Private Equity.

Mr. Chan is ranked and recommended by Chambers Asia Pacific and IFLR 1000 for M&A, private equity and venture capital in China. He has been listed by Legal Media Group’s Expert Guides as one of the world’s leading lawyers for M&A in China. He is also featured in AVCJ/Private Equity Asia Who’s Who in Private Equity—China. He is the author and editor of Venture Capital and Private Equity in China, the first definitive bilingual treatise in the industry published by LexisNexis and China Law Press.

Prior to joining Sidley, a team under his leadership garnered the coveted “Corporate Counsel of the Year” and “Investor Counsel of the Year” awards from Top Capital in 2009 and 2010.

Mr. Chan speaks fluent Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese as well as English.

Selected Speaking Engagements

• “An Overview of Going Private for Chinese Public Companies in the U.S. and Shanghai”, Speaker, China Venture Capital and Private Equity Association - Going Private Seminar, Shanghai, China, December 22, 2011
• “Why Choose Hong Kong Capital Market?” and “Beyond the Privatization”, Panelist, 2011 Halter Financial Summit, Guangzhou, China, December 11, 2011
• “Significant New Development in which Chinese Issuers in the U.S. delist from the U.S. Exchanges, Go Private and then Relist in Asia”, Roundtable Speaker, CMAA & Forbes China – M&A 2011 Series Forum on China-Concepts Stocks, Shanghai, China, November 15, 2011
• “U.S., Hong Kong and Global Capital Markets: How do Chinese Companies Raise Money?”, Panelist, 2011 China Mega Forum for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Beijing, China, November 10-11, 2011
• “Startups Battle the BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent)”, Speaker, Silicon Dragon Shanghai 2011, Shanghai, China, November 7, 2011
• “The View of Private Investors and HNWI’s”, Panel Moderator, China Offshore Summit, Shanghai, China, October 26-27, 2011
• “The Basic Requirements of Listings in Hong Kong”, Speaker, Listing in Hong Kong Conference, Hefei, China, October 27, 2011
• “Lessons Learned From Recent Transactions”, Panel Moderator, Healthcare Funds in China Roundtable, Shanghai, China, October 26, 2011
• “E-Commerce Industry Trends and Investment Opportunities”, Keynote Speaker, Future of E-Commerce in China industry event, Beijing, September 21, 2011
• “How can the Financial Industries Help and Facilitate the Growth of the Emerging Industries in the New Era?”, Panelist, The Global CEO Conference 2011, Shanghai, September 15-17, 2011
• “Mergers & Acquisitions: Asian Investment in Technology, Media & Telecommunications”, Speaker, Asia Business Conference: Progress through Partnerships (hosted by Harvard University), Boston, U.S., April 1-2, 2011
• “The State of Entrepreneurship in China”, Panelist, Early Stage Entrepreneurship Forum: Raising Capital, Shanghai, China, March 4, 2011
• “An Overview of the Regulatory Landscape for RMB Funds and Current Structuring Options”, Co-Presenter, Hong Kong, February 17, 2011
• “Financial Innovation and Enterprise Development”, Panelist, The Enterprises Development Forum 2011 - The Information Age, Shanghai, China, January 23, 2011
• “Constant Innovation“, Moderator, “The China Mega-Forum for Entrepreneurship and Innovation”, Beijing, China, October 25, 2010 
• “Legal requirements for Overseas IPOs and RTOs“, Presenter, Christensen Conference on Listings in the U.S. Markets, Xian, China, June 21, 2010 
• “IPOs, M&As, and Exit Avenues in Cleantech“, Moderator, 2010 China Cleantech Business Forum, Beijing, China, June 7, 2010 
• “Basic Overview and Key Recent Legal Developments“, Presenter, CCH SOX & SEC Compliance Conference 2010, Shanghai, China, May 19, 2010 
• “Fundraising & Exit Strategy“, Moderator, AAMA Shanghai CEO/Entrepreneur Workshop, Shanghai, China, January 28, 2010 
• “China Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) and Foreign Venture Investment“, Panelist, 2009 CIFC China Venture Capital Summit, Suzhou, China, October 30, 2009 
• “Roadmap for RMB Fund“, Lecturer, CVCA China Private Equity Management Courses, Beijing, China, June 26, 2009 
• “Chinese Companies Outbound M&A: Structuring, Regulatory and Risk Control, Presenter, Symposium on Supervision of Chinese Enterprise Overseas Investment by MOFCOM“, Shanghai, China, June 6, 2009 
• “VC Investment under Financial Crisis“, Panel Moderator, The 5th Top Capital Investment and Investor Summit for Asia-Pacific, Beijing, China, May 21, 2009 
• “Exit: Find Certainties from Uncertainties“, China Venture Capital & Private Equity Annual Forum 2008 (CVCF), Beijing, China, December 10, 2008 
• “Legal and Regulatory Impact of “Onshorisation” on the Chinese PE/VC Market“, The 2nd Annual China Private Equity Conference - The Build-up of an Onshore Chinese Private Equity Market, Shanghai, November 26, 2008 
• “LP Market in China“, 2008 CIFC China Venture Capital Summit, Suzhou, China, November 21, 2008 
• “Comparative Provisions & Implications of the U.S. and China Bankruptcy Codes: Moving Toward a Common Ground?“, AIRA’s 2nd Annual Restructuring and Investing Conference, Shanghai, September 17, 2008 
• “Private Equity in China: Regulatory Changes and Evolving Markets“, ILPA Webcast, July 15, 2008 
• “International Venture Capital Specialist Certificate Course“, Lecturer, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China, May 24-25, 2008 
• “Cleantech Panel“, Panelist, Bay Area Council - Yangtze Council Venture Capital Summit, Shanghai, China, May 23, 2008 
• “Exit Process: New Regulations, New Opportunities, New Solutions“, Panelist, China Venture Capital & Private Equity Forum, Silicon Valley, California, May 6, 2008 
• “PE & VC in China: Best Exit Strategy, Panelist, 2008 China-GEM IPO and Private Equity Forum“, Shanghai, China, April 26, 2008 
• “The Trend of RMB Fund in the Form of LP and Risk Management“, Presenter, 2008 China Limited Partner Forum, Shanghai, China, January 17, 2008 
• “Investment Opportunities for Private Equity with High Return in China“, Panelist, Fudan University’s 2008 China IPO and Private Equity Summit, Shanghai, China, January 13, 2008 
• “Practical Considerations: Issues and Challenges When Taking a Company Public“, Speaker, IR Magazine China Investor Relations Conference and Awards, Shanghai, China, December 6, 2007 The Legal Environment in China, Lecturer, UCLA-NUS EMBA Program, Shanghai, China, November 22, 2007 
• “How Do Investors Add Value“, Keynote Speaker, China CEO Investment Summit, Shanghai, China, October 13, 2007 
• “The Investment and Management Faced by the GP of RMB Fund“, Panel Moderator, China Limited Partner Forum, Beijing, China, September 23, 2007 
• “The Fundamentals of a Smooth IPO“, Panel Moderator, Investor Relations Officer (IRO) Seminar, Shanghai, China, September 11, 2007 
• “Cross-border M&A-Investment in China: The Major Global M&A Frontier“, Speaker, 2007 International Merger & Acquisition Summit, Beijing, China, April 21, 2007 
• “IPO’s and M&A’s – VC Exit Strategies“, Speaker, ChinaVenture Annual Conference 2007, Beijing, China, April 12, 2007 
• “China’s New Rules on Foreign Investment, Mergers and Acquisitions– What the New Rules Mean for Investors in China“, Speaker, Strategic Research Institute’s 2nd Annual China Private Equity Investing Forum, New York City, NY, November 28 – 29, 2006 
• “Acquisition of U.S. Companies – Confronting the U.S. Legal Landscape“, Speaker/Moderator; 2006 Asian M&A Forum (AVCJ); Shanghai, China; October 10, 2006

Selected Publications

• Featured commentator in China Deals Blow To Buyout Firms, The Wall Street Journal, May 7, 2012
• Featured commentator in PE Firms Play With Fire In Chinese Co. Buyouts, Law360, January 13, 2012
• Featured commentator in Some Chinese Companies Giving up their U.S. Stock Listings, USA Today, December 28, 2011
• Featured commentator in Stung, Chinese Firms Now Look to Go Private, The Wall Street Journal, September 2, 2011
• Shanghai Authorities Issue Pilot Measures to Attract Foreign Private Equity Funds, Sidley Update, January 21, 2011
• What Happens on the Outsourcer’s Insolvency: A Comparison of Relevant Insolvency Principles in the U.S., India and China, PLC Handbook, February 2010 
• GEM Rules Take Final Shape in China, LexisNexis China Legal Review, April 2009 
• “Representations and Warranties” in M&A Agreement, CEIBS Business Review, November 2008 
• Administrative Measures for Initial Public Offerings and Listing on the Growth Enterprise Market - The Impact on the VC Industry in China, China Legal Review, June 2008 
• Overcoming the Risks of RMB Fund, China Venture, May 2008 
• Private Equity Venture Capital Funds are Concerned as China Imposes New Restrictions on Internet Audiovisual Services, Global Intellectual Property Asset Management Report, April 2008 
• China And Hong Kong’s Regulatory Environment For Foreign Hedge Funds: An Overview, Complinet, April 2008 
• Venture Capital & Private Equity in China, LexisNexis / China Law Press, January 2008 
• Viability of Red-Chip Model: Exit Through Offshore Listings Reconsidered, Top Capital, July 2007

• Sidley Ranks Highly in Chambers Asia Pacific 2011
  March 2011
• Corporate Partner Joseph Chan Joins Sidley Austin in Shanghai
  November 3, 2010