Skadden, Kirkland, KWM on New York IPO of 'China's Tinder'
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and Chinese firm Han Kun Law offices are acting opposite Kirkland & Ellis and King & Wood Mallesons on the New York IPO of the Chinese dating app company, Momo Inc, which could raise between $200m and $300m..
December 10, 2014 at 03:28 AM
2 minute read
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and Chinese firm Han Kun Law offices are acting opposite Kirkland & Ellis and King & Wood Mallesons on the New York IPO of the Chinese dating app company, Momo Inc, which could raise between $200m and $300m.
Momo, referred to as 'China's Tinder', reported more than 180m registered users as of September 2014, with monthly active users reaching 60.2m – an increase of more than 100% in 12 months.
It claims to be the third most popular mobile instant messaging app in China after Weixin and Mobile QQ, and reported revenues of $13.9m in the first half of 2014 up from $3.1m in the same period last year.
Skadden is acting for Momo on the deal, with shares being listed on Nasdaq.
Leading a team is Hong Kong corporate partner Julie Gao, who has now advised on the IPOs of nearly 50 China-based companies – a large number of which are in the technology, internet and retail sectors. Providing PRC counsel is Beijing-based Han Kun Law Offices – a 10 year-old firm upcoming in TMT and capital markets.
Kirkland is advising the underwriters, alongside King & Wood Mallesons, who is providing China law advice. Hong Kong-based corporate partner David Zhang is heading up, working with two other partners Benjamin Su and Ben James.
The banks include Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, JP Morgan and China Renaissance.
Momo is among a string of Chinese internet companies looking to tap the country's burgeoning population of mobile internet users.
Earlier this year, e-commerce giant Alibaba raised $21.8bn on the New York Stock Exchange – the biggest new listing in history – while China's version of Craigslist, 58.com, announced its own IPO worth $165m in October last year.
Momo said it will use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, such as research, marketing and technology infrastructure, but may also acquire or invest in other technology businesses.
It made 63.0% of its net income in the first half of 2014 from membership subscription fees, generating additional revenue from mobile games, paid emoticons and mobile marketing services.
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