À̹ÌÁö È®´ë Bae, Kim & Lee (BKL), South Korea¡¯s second-largest law firm by revenue, has won the acquisition deal of the year award from the Vietnam M&A Forum 2018 for the third straight year.
The Korean law firm said it was recognized for its role in assisting Korea¡¯s Lotte Card on the acquisition of Techcom Finance, a subsidiary of Vietnam¡¯s Techcombank. BKL¡¯s team from its Seoul and Vietnam offices advised Lotte Card on all legal aspects of the deal, including advising on the deal structure, performing due diligence on Techcom Finance, drafting and negotiating legal documents, and gaining approval from Vietnam¡¯s central bank.
¡°This marks the first case in Vietnam in which a foreign credit institution wholly acquired a local financial company,¡± said a BKL official. The firm added that it provided comprehensive legal advice on securities, corporate and tax issues in full compliance with the country¡¯s laws and regulations.
This would be BKL¡¯s third win of the same award. In 2016, it advised Dongwon Systems on its acquisition of two Vietnamese packaging companies, Tan Tien Plastic Packaging and Minh Viet Packaging. In 2017, it was the legal advisor for the Korean food giant CJ Cheiljedang in its buyout of two Vietnamese food companies, Cau Tre and Minh Dat Food.
Now in its 10th year, the Vietnam M&A forum is hosted by Vietnam Investment Review, a business media outlet under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and is now one of the largest M&A forums in the country. The award ceremony will take place at GEM Center, Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday.
By Cho Hee-young and Kim Hyo-jin
[¨Ï Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]