Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. > Beijing, China > Firm Profile
Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. Offices
UNIT 01-02, FLOOR 15, TOWER B
PARKVIEW GREEN TOWER, NO 9 DONG DA QIAO ROAD, CHAOYANG DISTRICT
BEIJING 100020
China
Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. > The Legal 500 Rankings
China > Tax: foreign firms Tier 2
Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. offers comprehensive advisories that encompass areas from M&A tax planning, and group reorganisations, to joint ventures and project financing, with proficiencies including individual income taxation, customs, and foreign exchange controls. At the forefront of the firm’s China tax practice is Min Guo, whose expertise involves advising companies on their foreign investments in China, particularly within the energy and industry sectors. Guo’s wide-ranging experience includes a plethora of PRC and international tax, accounting, customs, and foreign exchange control matters.Practice head(s):
Min Guo
Key clients
Aluminum Corporation of China
Biomérieux
Clarins
Datawords
Framatome
Gant
Ipsen
Renault
Total
Work highlights
- Advised Datawords, a Multicultural Ingenuity digital expert, on all legal and tax aspects of its acquisition of award-winning integrated communication Chinese company Switching-Time, with the support of Keensight Capital, Datawords’ majority shareholder, to empower international brands with digital campaign solutions in China.
- Advised Ipsen, a leading European biopharmaceutical company, with a focus on transformative medicines in three key therapeutic areas: oncology, rare disease and neuroscience, on the Chinese legal and tax aspects of the sale of its global consumer healthcare (the CHC Sale) branch to Mayoly Splinder, an independent French family-run pharmaceutical company.
China > Antitrust and competition: foreign firms Tier 3
The competition team at Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. handles both transactional and compliance matters for global businesses in China. The practice is retained by clients to advise on anti-monopoly law, reviewing commercial policies, and merger filings. David Boitout, Jiannian Fan , and Min Guo all lead the team with their combined expertise in competition and antitrust law. Associate Xi Chen is based in Beijing and handles merger notifications to SAMR, compliance, and project work.Practice head(s):
David Boitout; Jiannian Fan; Min Guo
Other key lawyers:
Key clients
Accor
Air Liquide
Alstom
Lacoste
PSA Group
Renault
Total
Valeo
Vallourec
Work highlights
China > Projects and energy: foreign firms Tier 4
Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I.’s projects and energy experience extend across a wide variety of sectors, from infrastructure including motorways and public transportation to power sources such as hydroelectricity and coal. The team's leaders include David Boitout and Jiannian Fan in Shanghai, and tax specialist Min Guo in Beijing. Counsel Xi Chen’s practice focuses on guiding Chinese clients on their outbound investments and European clients on their projects in China.Practice head(s):
David Boitout; Jiannian Fan; Min Guo
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘With experience in providing clients with legal services for multi-country mining development in West Africa, Counsel Xi Chen is familiar with client needs, communicates smoothly, and can provide valuable, timely, diverse and professional legal services. His areas of expertise are legal due diligence, dispute resolution, tax planning, investment, etc. aspects.’
‘Counsel Xi Chen communicates with clients smoothly, ensuring the clients’ needs are met. As a French speaker, Xi has an obvious advantage in working with clients from West African countries such as Guinea where French is the official language. He has rich experience negotiating with local governments investing in West Africa, and has assisted a domestic central enterprise in successfully obtaining mining rights.’
Key clients
Air Liquide
Aluminum Corporation of China Ltd (Chalco)
China Cosco Shipping
China Energy International Group Co Ltd
China Standard Inspection Co. Ltd
Engie
Framatome (ex-Areva NP)
International Finance Corporation
TotalEnergies
Vallourec
Work highlights
- Advised Chalco Hong Kong Ltd on the development of the Boffa Nord and Boffa Sud bauxite mining blocks in the Republic of Guinea.
- Advised China Energy Engineering Corp (CEEC) on an EPC contract in relation to a biomass energy project in Côte d’Ivoire with Bioeva, which is owned by Électricité de France (EDF), Meridiam and Biokala.
China > Corporate and M&A: foreign firms Tier 5
The China practice of France-headquartered Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. covers day-to-day corporate issues, M&A, joint ventures, reorganisations and corporate structuring. The team also assists with financings, liquidations and corporate governance. David Boitout is a merger, joint venture and cross-border acquisition specialist; Fan Jiannian is Shanghai office head; and Guo Min oversees the Beijing office.Practice head(s):
David Boitout; Fan Jiannian; Guo Min
Testimonials
‘The team has a great availability. Gide is both an international and French law firm. The Chinese office has this culture and it renders the communication with their clients (notably French) very easy.‘
‘Jiannian Fan has very good knowledge of the Chinese environment and is very available. He is also fluent in French and knows French civil law. Such skills improve communication and the understanding of issues from French clients. Generally speaking the quality of his services and advice is excellent. He provides his clients with a clear view of the different problems and has a pragmatic approach.‘
Key clients
ADEO SERVICES
AIR LIQUIDE
BEL
DATAWORDS
MF BRANDS
ICICLE
IPSEN
LEGRAND
STERIMED
VALLOUREC
Work highlights
- Advised Adeo Services on the sale of 100% of the equity in Leroy Merlin Consulting (Beijing) Co., Ltd and the transfer of its property in Beijing to Ministorage Investment V Limited.
- Advised BEL, a major European player in healthy fruit and dairy single-serving portion snacking, on its acquisition of 70% of Shandong Junjun Cheese’s share capital.
- Advised Sterimed, one of the world’s leading suppliers of sterile devices packaging, on the acquisition of Fujian Jinyu New Material Technology.
Gide Loyrette Nouel A.A.R.P.I. > Firm Profile
Founded in 1920, Gide is a leading international law firm operating out of 11 offices worldwide. With over 550 lawyers and legal consultants drawn from 35 different nationalities, the firm provides specialist quality legal services in the most complex areas of national and international business law.
Gide has provided a broad range of legal services to clients in Asia for nearly 30 years. The practice is handled by a team of Western and Chinese lawyers, working from Beijing and Shanghai. Its lawyers are highly experienced in each of the various sectors of national and international business law. The team co-operates closely with the firm’s specialist teams in Paris and its other international offices. Gide’s work extends throughout all of China, depending on where negotiations are taking place or where its clients’ businesses are based. If required, the China team also works with local lawyers and legal consultants in the regions where clients conduct business.
Recent assignments include:
- Advised Stellantis N.V. on the establishment of Mobile Drive, a joint venture in partnership with Foxconn to develop breakthrough smart cockpits solutions and personalized connected services;
- Advised ICICLE, the established natural and durable fashion brand in China, on the creation of ICCF Group (Icicle Carven China France), uniting ICICLE and the Parisian fashion house CARVEN, that is owned by ICICLE since 2018;
- Advised PSA Group on the sale of its 50% equity interest in Chang’an PSA Automobiles Co., Ltd. to Bao Neng Group;
- Advised Air Liquide, a world leader in gases, technologies and services for industry and health, on the creation of a joint venture with Chengdu Huaqi Houpu Holding Co., Ltd. to develop hydrogen refilling stations for fuel cell electric vehicles
- Advised Chinalco on highly strategic mining investments in Guinea: the development of the Boffa Nord and Boffa Sud bauxite mining blocks, as well as the Simandou iron ore project, one of the largest mining projects in the world;
- Advised Quechen Silicon Chemical Co., Ltd., the leader in silica manufacturing in Asia and owner of the biggest single silica production base in the world, on its greenfield investment in France (on the land of the Grand Port Maritime de Marseille, the largest industrial port in the Mediterranean region);
- Advised Semir, the leader in kidswear fashion in China, on the acquisition of European leader in premium children’s fashion Kidiliz;
- Advised Veolia Environnement on its first and second issues of Panda Bonds for an amount of RMB 1bn each. Veolia Environnement was the first French and the second European corporate issuer to complete a private bond placement on the Chinese domestic market;
- Advised Bank of Communications, China’s fifth-largest commercial bank, on the establishment of a branch of its Luxembourg subsidiary in France;
- Advised Total on the sale of its China polystyrene business to INEOS Styrolution;
- Advised Legrand on its purchase of Shenzhen Clever Electronic Co., Ltd.;
- Advised Renault on its joint venture with Chinese automaker Brilliance;
- Advised China Harbour Engineering Corporation on the formation of a joint venture company with Bolloré and CMA-CGM in Cameroon to operate the container terminal at the deep water port of Kribi;
- Advised Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) on the establishment of the Sino-Congolese Bank for Africa (BSCA) in the Republic of Congo, along with the Congolese government and other public and private partners. This landmark transaction is ABC’s first overseas joint venture bank project and creates the first Sino-African green-field bank;
- Advised Vallourec on its HKD 846.6m acquisition of 50.61% of the entire issued share capital of Anhui Tianda Oil Pipe Co., Ltd.;
- Advised Chinese listed company Inner Mongolia Furui Medical Science on its investment in a French company specialising in medical imaging software and services for oncology clinical trials, cancer screening, and clinical practice;
- Advised Canglong Optoelectronic Technology, part of FiberHome Technologies Group, a major Chinese state-owned enterprise specialising in optical fibre and cable products, on the acquisition of a 70% stake in a French high-tech company;
- Advised Golden Concord Group (GCL), the world’s leading photovoltaic material manufacturer, on the acquisition of a majority stake in a geothermal power generation plant in Turkey owned by Dubai-based energy company Ecolog;
- Advising Engie on its JV and cooperation project with Chinese state-owned Sichuan Energy Investment Distributed Energy Systems, involving the development, construction and operation of a cooling, heating and energy production (tri-generation) facility for a central business district in Sichuan Province;
- Advised China Exim Bank on the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent’s subsidiary Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise by China Huaxin Post & Telecommunication Economy Development Center;
- Advised luxury French fashion house SMCP (Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot and Sandro Men) on its acquisition of 100% of the share capital in Hong Kong company AZ Retail Ltd;
- Advising Renault on its JV with Dongfeng Motor Corporation, China’s second-largest vehicle manufacturer. Based in Wuhan, Hebei Province the JV will see Renault invest RMB 11 billion (US$ 1.8bn);
- Advised Credit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank on the sale of CLSA to China’s CITICS for US$ 1.252bn;
- Advised the giant Chinese agribusiness COFCO on the acquisition of Chateau de Viaud, a leading vineyard set in the prestigious Lalande-de-Pomerol wine growing area in France;
- Advised SEB, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of cookware and small domestic appliances, on the acquisition of a further stake in Zhejiang Supor, listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.
Main Contacts
| Department | Name | Telephone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| M&A / Corporate | David Boitout | boitout@gide.com | +86 10 6597 4511 |
| Tax / M&A / Corporate | Guo Min | guo@gide.com | +86 10 6597 4511 |
Lawyer Profiles
| Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Mr Xi Chen | Admitted to the Paris bar, Chen Xi is a counsel in Gide’s… | View Profile |
|
Ms Guo Min | A member of the PRC Bar and Institute of Certified Public Taxation… | View Profile |
Languages
Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin) English French German SpanishOther
Number of lawyers : 550 Number of lawyers at this office : 15 Contacts : David Boitout, partner (boitout@gide.com) Contacts : Guo Min, partner (guo@gide.com) Contacts : Chen Xi, counsel (chen.xi@gide.com) Other offices : Algiers Other offices : Brussels Other offices : Casablanca Other offices : Istanbul Other offices : London Other offices : New York Other offices : Paris Other offices : Shanghai Other offices : Tunis Other offices : WarsawDiversity
Gide is an international firm present in 10 countries, with lawyers of 35 different nationalities and languages spoken representing 41 of the world’s bars, with an average of 22% of non-locals on average in our offices.
Such a rich diversity of its members is a significant performance factor for Gide.
With this in mind, the firm combats all forms of discrimination and actively encourages diversity, in particular in the following fields:
- respecting equal opportunities when recruiting and promoting individuals: equal pay for equal work;
- providing specific coaching (mentoring & meetings) to women of high potential,
- respecting diversity of origins (regional, national, ethnic, cultural, etc.)
Our commitment to diversity is reflected in concrete actions:
- Signatory to the Diversity Charter since 2018
- A Diversity workgroup whose first act was to issue a questionnaire on the perception of diversity within Gide, and to establish an action plan to handle this matter
- Award-winning “Expect to be surprised” recruitment campaign and open positions sent to our Pro Bono partners to encourage diverse applications
- Gide Talents, an initiative designed by our Executive Committee to encourage applications from diverse backgrounds