On April 14th the Nordic Chambers jointly organized an expert event about inbound M&A opportunities in China. Held at the Volvo Studio in Shanghai, the event gathered a full house of guests from leading Nordic corporates and organizations.

The event agenda was kicked-off by Nordic Match Partner Tony Wang, who presented key drivers for the Nordic inbound M&A market in China, followed by Ludvig Nilsson’s overview of Jade Invest’s M&A strategies of their portfolio companies. Therese Trulsen from Wikborg Rein wrapped the topic with the M&A journey from a legal point of view, covering the planning, acquisition, and implementation phases of a deal.

Key takeaways from the event can be summarized from three phases of the M&A journey. First, it is important to keep a healthy pipeline of potential target companies in a buy-process, as only around 10% of negotiations lead to a completed transaction. This phase is to be supported by systematic screening of the potential targets. Secondly, it is important to consider whether to have a non Chinese company or a Chinese subsidiary acquire a Chinese target, as this will impact the complexity and exit phases of the transaction. Thirdly, SPAs in China tend to contain longer warranty catalogue and indemnities list than what is typical in the Nordics.

Tony Wang, Partner at Nordic Match said:

“China is soon the largest economy in the world and a region that Nordic companies can´t afford to stay aside. The idea behind the M&A playbook seminar was to cut through the complexities and myths when it comes to investing in China. We are very thankful for the joint efforts of the Nordic chambers in Shanghai for bringing up this topic. We expect the investments will continue to accelerate during the upcoming 12 months to come.”


About Nordic Match

Nordic Match is a boutique M&A and Strategy Advisor headquartered in Shanghai, China. Dedicated to Sino-Nordic transactions, we have a clear vision – to support aspiring corporates and investors in search for value-creating opportunities between Nordics and China.

More about Nordic Match: www.nordic-match.com