MoFo Expands Private Equity Practice in China with Hire of Kirkland & Ellis Partner

MoFo Expands Private Equity Practice in China with Hire of Kirkland & Ellis Partner

Morrison Foerster (MoFo) has strengthened its private equity capabilities in China through the addition of a new partner. Rongjing Zhao, who previously worked at Kirkland & Ellis for eight years, has joined MoFo and will operate out of the firm's offices in Shanghai and Beijing.

Rongjing Zhao becomes the third private equity partner to join the firm in the region this year. Earlier, MoFo added Steven Tran and Tabitha Saw, both experienced private equity lawyers from Mayer Brown and White & Case, respectively, to its Singapore office.

Zhao's appointment also marks a significant addition to MoFo's M&A and PE teams in China, following the departure of partner Li Ruomu to Cooley in Shanghai in December 2022.

“Rongjing is a US-trained lawyer and Mandarin native speaker with extensive private equity M&A experience in China, Asia and the US,” said Marcia Ellis, global co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s private equity group.

According to Marcia Ellis, Rongjing Zhao's impressive technical skills and established connections with top private equity funds and corporations offer substantial potential for MoFo's clients in Asia and beyond, creating valuable synergies across the firm's global network.

During her time at Kirkland & Ellis, Rongjing Zhao worked out of both Shanghai and Hong Kong. She was promoted to partner in 2018, having joined the firm from O'Melveny & Myers four years earlier.

With extensive experience in cross-border transactions, Zhao advises private equity firms, institutional investors, and corporations on a variety of complex deals, including leveraged buyouts, control transactions, growth capital investments, spin-offs, and distressed M&A transactions.

She specialises in advising private equity funds on investments and acquisitions throughout Asia, including China. In addition, Zhao is also involved in take-privates of US-listed companies and other M&A transactions involving US public and private companies.

Zhao will be working closely with Paul McKenzie, a corporate partner who is also the managing partner of the firm's Beijing and Shanghai offices, as well as Sun Chuan, who specialises in cross-border M&A and is based in Shanghai.

Together, they collaborate with MoFo's broader regional team, including prominent figures like Marcia Ellis, the global co-chair of the private equity group, who is located in Hong Kong and has a client roster that includes GLP, BlackRock, and SoftBank Vision Fund, among others, and Ken Siegel, who leads the Japan M&A team.

Chambers Asia-Pacific has recognized the team as Band 1, praising their exceptional services and their ability to deliver high-quality advice on M&A transactions throughout the region. The Singapore and China offices have particularly impressed Chambers Asia-Pacific, highlighting the team's consistency in providing top-notch offerings to their clients.

Zhao stated that she was especially drawn to MoFo due to the firm's extensive expertise in Asia, with a wealth of talented professionals and a full range of practices available to support private equity firms and their portfolio companies throughout every stage of the investment process.

“I look forward to growing my private equity and M&A practice in China and in other geographies in Asia, while working together with my colleagues across the firm’s global offices to tackle our clients’ most strategic and important transactional needs,” Zhao added.