Richard Guo

Practice Areas

MR. RICHARD GUO SPECIALIZES IN PRIVATE EQUITY (FOCUSING ON BOTH FUND FORMATION AND DOWNSTREAM INVESTMENTS), ASSET/INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AND MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS.

Career

Richard has twenty years of practicing experience in private equity and investment funds. Prior to joining the firm in 2007, Richard practices US laws at the New York, Hong Kong and Shanghai offices of two Wall Street firms from 2001 to 2007.

Richard currently serves as a member of the governing board of the National Guidance Funds for the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements, the Special Legal Advisor to the Industry Policy Committee (IPC) of China Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA) and a member of the Technical Committee of Hong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (HKVCA).

Publications

Richard is a frequent author and speaker on private equity and investment funds topics. His recent publications include “The Asset Management Review / China Chapter” (co-author), Law Business Research Ltd. (2014, 2015 and 2016) and “Investment Management in China: Legal & Regulatory Landscape”, CUPL Press, January 2015 (editor- in-chief).

Personal

Honors and Awards

Richard is recognized as a leading authority in the investment funds area in China, having been involved in a number of ground-breaking deals in the region over the last few years. He has been ranked as a leading individual (Band 1) in investment funds by Chambers Asia Pacific ever since the inception of such ranking, and has been the only Band 1 -ranked practitioner over the years. Chambers Asia Pacific states that Richard “is one of the pioneering practitioners in fund formations in China,” “is acclaimed as a ‘go-to person’ and ‘the most knowledgeable lawyer in this field’” and “the leading light in this practice”. He is also recognized as a leading lawyer in private equity and/or investment funds by Asialaw Leading Lawyers, IFLR 1000, Who’s Who Legal (the sole practitioner from China selected for 2012), London-based Legal Media Group’s Expert Guides and Practical Law Company, “amidst much praise from clients for his deep expertise in funds and private equity matters.”

Experience

Richard leads our investment funds practice. He advises clients in the structuring, restructuring, formation and operation of alternative investment products, including private equity funds, co-investment funds, funds of funds, corporate venture funds and separately managed accounts, covering numerous sectors and strategies, including venture capital, buyout, infrastructure and real estate, mezzanine and credit, and secondary opportunities. Notably, Richard has devised many innovative or commonly used RMB fund structures.

Richard represents a wide range of sponsors in their fund formation and related activities, and serves one of the strongest client rosters in the fund management sector, including Actis, Alibaba Group, Baring Private Equity Asia, The Blackstone Group, Boyu Capital, The Carlyle Group, CICC, CITIC Capital, D. E. Shaw, FountainVest, Goldman Sachs, Hamilton Lane, Hony Capital, HOPU Investments, IDG Capital, J. P. Morgan, KKR, Morgan Stanley, Oaktree Capital, PAG, Primavera Capital, Providence Equity, SAIF Partners, Silver Lake, TPG and Warburg Pincus.

In addition to his GP representation, Richard also represents a select group of well-regarded institutional investors (including sovereign wealth funds, public companies, state-owned enterprises, insurance companies and other financial institutions) in making investments in private funds around the globe.

Richard also has significant experience in M&A transactions involving private equity firms across a broad spectrum of industries, with a particular focus on complex cross-border legal and regulatory issues, in the context of various national and local programs such as QDII, QFLP, QDLP, QDIE and ODI.

In recent years Richard has actively engaged in the rapidly developing RMB secondary market and provided tailored advice on a few landmark deals, including the first foreign-sponsored RMB S-fund, the first QFLP S-fund, and among the first GP-led restructurings, cross-border continuation funds, and cross-border GP-stake transactions.

Building on his substantial experience in capital market transactions, Richard is uniquely positioned to advise fund clients on initial public offerings and listings of both investment firms and investment vehicles. His recent representative capital market mandates include representing the underwriters in the initial public offering and listing of Mapletree Greater China Commercial Trust, one of Singapore’s largest real estate investment trust (REIT) IPOs.

Education