Firm relocates investment management partner and senior counsel to Singapore

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(Singapore) – Akin Gump has expanded its investment management capabilities in Asia with the relocation of investment management partner Olivia Chung and senior counsel Divya Thakur to its Singapore office. Previously, Ms. Chung and Ms. Thakur were resident in the firm’s New York and London offices, respectively.

Their arrival boosts the firm’s private equity funds and hedge funds practices on the ground in Asia and will further complement its highly recommended funds practices in Hong Kong, the United States and Europe.

Robert Griffin, investment management partner and head of Akin Gump’s Singapore office, commented: “By further developing our funds practice in Singapore, we provide our clients—both locally and internationally—with advice exactly where they need it, with two additional lawyers with well-established insight into helping clients doing business in the region. I am delighted to welcome Olivia and Divya to Singapore.”

Prakash Mehta, co-head of Akin Gump’s investment management practice, added: “This move will support our private equity and hedge fund clients in achieving their goals across South and Southeast Asia, including India, which continues to offer significant opportunities. This move will also allow Olivia and Divya to expand the support they provide to our Hong Kong funds practice.”

Ms. Chung assists private fund sponsors in relation to the formation, structuring and ongoing operation of private equity funds and hedge funds as well as managed accounts and investment solutions. She represents some of the world’s leading private equity, hedge fund and fund of funds sponsors. She also represents institutional investors acquiring and selling investments in private funds and establishing co-investment arrangements.

Ms Chung is registered as a foreign lawyer in Singapore and is admitted to practice in New York.

Ms. Thakur assists established and first-time fund sponsors and managers in the formation of a broad range of investment funds, including hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds and other structured fund products. She advises clients in structuring their business and ongoing operational, management and compliance issues. Her clients include sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, investment banks, multinational companies and U.S., European and Asian companies.

In 2019, Ms. Thakur was named by India Business Law Journal to its “International A-List,” a list of the top 100 international lawyers for India-related matters.

Ms. Thakur is registered as a foreign lawyer in Singapore and qualified to practice in India, New York, and England and Wales.

About Akin Gump’s Investment Management Practice

Akin Gump’s investment management practice, comprising more than 100 lawyers firmwide, is a recognized leader in the representation of large institutional and entrepreneurial fund sponsors and managers in the formation of private equity and hedge funds.

The firm serves as lead counsel to some of the world’s premier investors and helps them to access opportunities in markets around the world. Through the investment management team’s representation of a broad range of investment managers and institutional investors, lawyers gather proprietary insight on emerging trends in the private equity and hedge fund industries. Their knowledge and experience are particularly valuable to clients as convergence across asset classes continues to play out in the marketplace.

About Akin Gump in Singapore

Akin Gump’s Singapore office offers legal advice and counseling to international clients doing business in Singapore or through its markets. In recent years, many clients have expanded their operations and investments to emerging markets, including India, China and Southeast Asia. At the same time, owing to proactive government policies, Singapore has become an important hub for investing across Asia. Akin Gump’s Singapore office, together with its Hong Kong and Beijing offices, serves an international client base seeking representation in this increasingly important market.

Akin Gump’s lawyers in Singapore have broad and deep experience counseling international clients in investment funds and fund formation, project finance, energy transactions and international trade. In addition, the Singapore office is fully integrated into the firmwide system of cross-border, cross-practice collaboration, reflecting the knowledge, experience and values of the firm as a whole.

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP is a leading international law firm with more than 1,000 lawyers and advisors in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

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