Milbank’s Private Equity Hires in Hong Kong Reflect a Changing Market

Hong Kong. Credit: Patrick Foto/Shutterstock.com

In November, Milbank made history in Hong Kong when it hired three partners at once to focus on private equity deals. Having pulled back in Greater China since 2013, the firm is making a comeback in Hong Kong during perhaps the slowest lateral season in years.

Together with capital markets partner Alex Tao, who joined earlier from Allen & Overy, Andrew Whan, Neeraj Budhwani and Davide Mencacci brought Milbank’s Hong Kong lateral tally to four in 2020—the largest investment the firm has made in the market in at least a decade. The firm’s zigzags in Hong Kong reflect the broader trends the market has seen over the first two decades of the new millennium.