17 ASIAN LEGAL BUSINESS – SEPTEMBER 2023 WWW.LEGALBUSINESSONLINE.COM COVER STORY Despite plenty of opportunities for M&A across Asia in 2023, the first half of the year proved to be somewhat disappointing, with the value of deals down significantly from a year earlier. The value of deals in Asia Pacific in the first half of the year fell almost 40 percent year-on-year to $173 billion, according to GlobalData. The drop has been generally attributed to an uncertain geopolitical environment and unstable macroeconomic conditions. Also contributing to the drop has been the slowerthan-expected growth in consumer spending in mainland China along with concerns about the property market there, two big factors that have gone a long way towards denting sentiment for dealmaking in the region in the first six months of 2023. Several unexpected crises further afield may have also had an impact on dealmaking in the region. These crises included the fall of Credit Suisse (and its acquisition by UBS) as well as liquidity issues that led to a number of failures among smaller regional banks in the U.S., most notably Silicon Valley Bank. Continuing and rapid interest rate hikes in the U.S. and other major markets as part of efforts to tame inflation also had a hand in sending dealmaking to the backburner. Most of the more visible deals in Asia Pacific took place in the industrial sector, according to Refinitiv, which tracks such deals. The sector accounted for 21.1 percent of all deals in H1 2023, an 11.5 percent rise year-on-year. The materials sector saw the second largest number of M&A deals, accounting for 17.8 percent of the total and worth $61 billion in the first half of the year. In contrast, M&A activity in the oftenebullient technology sector plunged 60 percent in terms of deal value to $35 billion. GlobalData’s league table shows that JPMorgan and UBS were the top advisers by deal volume and value in the region for the first half of 2023. JPMorgan was on the top of the table in terms of deal value, with $25 billion worth of deals under its belt. UBS led the pack in terms of deal volume by advising on 18 deals. CHINA DOMESTIC TIER 1 • Commerce & Finance Law Offices • Haiwen & Partners • Han Kun Law Offices • Jingtian & Gongcheng • JunHe • King & Wood Mallesons • Tian Yuan Law Firm • Zhong Lun Law Firm TIER 2 • AllBright Law Offices • DaHui Lawyers • DeHeng Law Offices • Dentons China • Global Law Office • Grandall Law Firm • Guantao Law Firm • Jia Yuan Law Offices • Jincheng Tongda & Neal Law Firm • Llinks Law Offices TIER 3 • AnJie Broad Law Firm • Co-effort Law Firm LLP • East & Concord Partners • FenXun Partners • Grandway Law Offices • Hui Ye Law Firm • Long An Law Firm • Merits & Tree Law Offices • Shihui Partners • T&D Associates • Tahota Law Firm • V&T Law Firm NOTABLE FIRMS • Beijing DHH Law Firm • Beijing Docvit Law Firm • China Commercial Law Firm • HHP Attorneys-At-Law • Hylands Law Firm • JunZeJun Law Offices • Kangda Law Firm • Zhejiang L&H Law Firm CHINA INTERNATIONAL TIER 1 • Clifford Chance • Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer • Linklaters • Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom TIER 2 • Allen & Overy • Baker McKenzie FenXun • Davis Polk & Wardwell • DLA Piper • Hogan Lovells • Norton Rose Fulbright • Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison • Simpson Thacher & Bartlett • White & Case TIER 3 • Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton • Kirkland & Ellis • Morgan, Lewis & Bockius • Morrison & Foerster • Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe • Paul Hastings • Shearman & Sterling • Slaughter & May • Sullivan & Cromwell • Weil, Gotshal & Manges NOTABLE FIRMS • Ashurst • Bird & Bird • CMS • Dorsey & Whitney • Eversheds Sutherland • Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher • Gide Loyrette Nouel • Herbert Smith Freehills • Jones Day • K&L Gates • Latham & Watkins • Mayer Brown • Milbank • Nishimura & Asahi • O’Melveny • Reed Smith • Ropes & Gray • Seyfarth Shaw • Simmons & Simmons • Winston & Strawn HONG KONG TIER 1 • Clifford Chance • Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer • Kirkland & Ellis • Linklaters
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