Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Slaughter and May have won lead roles on China Pacific Insurance's $3.1bn (£1.9bn) Hong Kong initial public offering.

The listing, one of the largest global IPOs of 2009, saw Freshfields take a role for the China-based insurance company. The magic circle firm's team was led by global co-head of capital markets Kay Ian Ng and capital markets partner Calvin Lai, both of whom are based in Hong Kong.

China Pacific also instructed King & Wood for Chinese law advice.

Slaughter and May took the lead role for the underwriter UBS, which turned to Sullivan & Cromwell for US advice and to Commerce & Finance Law Offices for Chinese advice.

The mandates came after Freshfields and Slaughters both won roles on the largest Hong Kong IPO of 2009. Slaughters advised Metallurgical Corporation of China on its $5.2bn (£3.2bn) listing in September, when Freshfields advised the underwriter.

Commenting on Freshfields' instructions, Ng said: "We are delighted to have worked on so many significant IPO mandates and grateful to our clients to have entrusted us to work on such key advisory roles. Our 2009 track record clearly demonstrates our leading market position in the IPO market."

Freshfields landed roles on each of the five largest IPOs in Hong Kong during 2009, including those of China Minsheng Banking, valued at $3.9bn (£2.4bn), China Longyuan Power Group, worth $2.6bn (£1.6bn), and Sands China, which raised $2.5bn (£1.6bn).