Mr Sunil Rai > Dentons Rodyk > Singapore, Singapore > Lawyer Profile

Dentons Rodyk Offices

Dentons Rodyk
80 RAFFLES PLACE
#33-00 UOB PLAZA 1
SINGAPORE 048624
Singapore
Visit website 65 6225 2626 65 6225 1838

Mr Sunil Rai

Sunil Rai photo
+65 6885 3624 sunil.rai@dentons.com View profile View profile

Work Department

Corporate, M&A, Venture Capital, Private Equity

Position

Sunil Rai is a senior partner in Dentons Rodyk’s Corporate practice group. He is co-head of the Venture Tech & Emerging Growth Companies practice group. He is also co-head of the India practice group which works on outbound and inbound India-related transactions .

Sunil concentrates his practice in corporate and transactional matters encompassing investments and exits (buyouts, trade sales), domestic and cross border mergers and acquisitions (M&A), joint ventures, licensing, corporate governance, restructuring of entities, employment law matters including formulating stock option/ share award schemes (ESOP/ ESAS), establishing new businesses and assisting clients in drafting and reviewing contracts across a broad spectrum of various industries, verticals and government sectors. Sunil is particularly experienced in complex investment and venture-backed transactions involving multiple parties, various shareholders and parties across several jurisdictions. He enjoys acting for institutional investors (family offices, venture capital funds and private equity investors) making investments and divestments and start-ups/ early stage entities receiving investments at all stages of a company’s life-cycle – from seed stage to advanced stages such as Series D and beyond.

Sunil has a strong interest in investment-related work (involving venture capital and private equity), building up the Israel, Middle East and India – Singapore deal corridor and also enthusiastically assisting in the growth of various SMEs, start-ups and private funds through establishing new ventures, handling legal issues, fund-raising, managing of investments and value creation.

Sunil has given several presentations and written articles on business structures, investment term sheets, essentials of contracts, corporate fraud, mergers regime under Competition Act of Singapore, Personal Data Protection Act and amendments to Companies Act of Singapore and the Variable Capital Company regime. He has also been actively involved in pro bono activities for several years including being a grassroots leader and also an active mediator with Community Mediation Centre and Consumer Association of Singapore and mentoring startups at Singapore University of Social Sciences. Sunil also volunteered as a judge at the International Mediation Competitions organised by SIMI in 2019 and 2020.

Career

Senior Partner – Dentons Rodyk & Davidson LLP (formerly Rodyk & Davidson LLP) (2022 – present)
Partner – Dentons Rodyk & Davidson LLP (formerly Rodyk & Davidson LLP) (2005 – 2021)

Memberships

Member, Law Society of Singapore
Member, Singapore Academy of Law

Education

University of Manchester, 2014, MBA, (Global)
2005, Postgraduate Study, Practice Law Course (in Top 10% of cohort)
National University of Singapore, 2005, LLB, (2nd Class Hons, Upper Division)

Lawyer Rankings

Singapore > Start-up and venture capital – Foreign firms

A pre-eminent firm in the Singapore start-up and venture capital market, Dentons Rodyk is vastly experienced when assisting tech and fintech start-ups across the spectrum of financing transactions, from seed-stage to advanced stages including series E and F, trade sales, MBOs, IPOs and SPACs. One of those leading the practice is corporate specialist S Sivanesan, who acts for a broad range of clients including founders, start-ups, fund managers and venture capital funds. Co-head Sunil Rai is well regarded for outbound and inbound India-related transactions, having been involved in a number of significant deals involving high-growth emerging companies and unicorns in the region. Ray Chiang, promoted to partner in January 2023, is also a key contact for venture-backed deals with an Indian nexus, while fintech and blockchain expert Li Chuan Hsu is active at all stages of fund-raising, from start-up to pre- and post-IPO.

Singapore > Start-up and venture capital – Local firms

(Leading Individuals)

Sunil Rai – Dentons Rodyk

Dentons Rodyk is a leading presence in Singapore and the wider Southeast Asia region when advising prominent venture-backed entities across the spectrum of the investment life-cycle, from seed and advanced stages to trade sales, IPOs and SPACs. Particularly noteworthy for its cross-border transactional expertise, joint practice head S Sivanesan is highly sought after by founders, entrepreneurs, start-ups, capital and private equity funds. India-related transaction expert Sunil Rai is a go-to lawyer for high-growth emerging entities and unicorns in the region, while Li Chuan Hsu is particularly well-regarded for his experience in handling transactions with a Chinese nexus.

Singapore > Corporate and M&A: foreign firms

Counting vendors, acquirers and financiers across the technology, healthcare, corporate real estate, consumer products and financial services sectors among its key roster of clients, Dentons Rodyk leverages its comprehensive international network to advise on cross-border M&A, private equity and venture capital transactions. Praised as ‘a leading authority in M&A’, Marian Ho jointly leads the team alongside Eng Leng Ng and S Sivanesan, while other key contacts in the group include Valerie Ong, Evelyn Ang, Sunil Rai and Mark Wong.

Lawyer Rankings

Top Tier Firm Rankings

Firm Rankings