About
Danny Li is a Partner in our Private Capital team.
He has over a decade of experience advising the world’s leading PE sponsors, pension fund investors, sovereigns and multinational corporations on their PE, M&A, JV, consortium and growth capital transactions across Asia-Pacific.
His recognitions include being named a ‘Rising Star’ in the Hong Kong category in Euromoney’s 'Expert Guide' and in the Corporate / M&A and Hong Kong categories for the IFLR Rising Star Awards (Asia-Pacific).
Danny spent time on client secondment at CPP Investments (CPPIB) in 2021, acting as their APAC Managing Director (Legal).
Additional Information
Selected highlights of Danny's experience include advising:
Private Equity
- EQT on various transactions across Asia, including its sale (alongside PAI Partners) of World Freight Company, one of the world’s largest general sales and service agents for the global air freight industry, to Brookfield PE;
- Blackstone on various transactions across Asia, including:
- its LBO acquisition of Anantara Maldives;
- its LBO acquisition of Conrad Maldives Rangali Island; and
- its US$525m privatization and delisting of SGX-listed Soilbuild Business Space REIT;
- asset roll-ups in connection with the IPO of Ventive Hospitality;
- Permira on various transactions across Asia, including:
- its US$2.76bn sale of Tricor, a global corporate services business, to EQT (formerly Baring Private Equity Asia), as well as the initial LBO acquisition from BEA / NWS and subsequent bolt-on of NZGT Holdings;
- its sale of a 50% stake in Grobest Group, a regional aqua-feed business; and
- its strategic investment in SILA, a business services platform in India;
- CVC Capital Partners on various transactions across Asia and the Middle East, including:
- the sale of its stake in GEMS Education, one of the world's largest private school operators, to a consortium led by Brookfield; and
- its acquisition of a 60% stake in Phuong Chau, an operator of maternal and infant care hospitals in Vietnam;
- CPP Investments (CPPIB) on various transactions across the US and Asia, including its investments in:
- Virtusa, a US IT services company;
- Patties Food and Vesco Food, an Australian food manufacturing company;
- Flipkart, an Indian e-commerce company;
- Accion Labs, an Indian cloud engineering and innovation company;
- DailyHunt, an Indian content and news aggregator platform;
- Eruditus Learning, an Indian education platform;
- Acko Tech, an India D2C insurance platform;
- Zenex Animal Health, an Indian animal helath solutions business; and
- Indospace Core, a JV with Indospace for stabilised industrial and logistics real estate assets in India;
- Carlyle on various transactions across Asia and the Middle East, including its acquisition of a controlling stake in VLCC, a beauty and wellness solutions business with operations across India and the Middle East;
- Affinity Equity Partners on its sale of Trimco, a regional garment label manufacturer, to Brookfield PE (as well as the initial US$520m LBO from Partners Group);
- a Middle East investor on its investment in a ports business in Asia-Pacific;
- APG on its cornerstone investment in Monde Nissin Corporation, a Philippines F&B company; and
- HOPU, Temasek, International Finance Corporation and Standard Chartered Private Equity (as members of a consortium) on their US$488m co-investment with COFCO into Noble Agri.
Public M&A
- ESR Group on its US$7bn privatisation by a consortium of financial investors -- the largest HKSE take-private since 2021 and 'Best M&A Deal (Hong Kong)' at the FinanceAsia Achievement Awards 2025;
- Citigroup as financial adviser to Boston Scientific in its partial offer for a controlling stake in Acotec Scientific (HKSE: 6669);
- PepsiCo on its HK$1bn PIPE investment in HKSE-listed Natural Food International Holdings (1837.HK);
- CK Asset Holdings (as a member of a consortium) on the proposed US$9.7bn take-private of ASX-listed APA Group; and
- Hong Leong Group on the proposed US$1.6bn privatisation of HKSE-listed Guoco Group (0053.HK).
Private M&A
- Danone on its negotiated exit from a JV with COFCO Corporation and Arla Foods;
- Alibaba on a US$3bn+ series-round financing for Ele.me (饿了么) and Koubei (口碑), raising funds from Alibaba, SoftBank Vision Fund and other third party investors;
- a US Fortune 500 tech company on its ‘acquihire’ of an augmented-reality business and software engineering team in the Asia-Pacific region;
- InterContinental Hotels on its acquisition of 51% of the Regent Hotels brand and related assets from Formosa International Hotels, together with the up-branding of the InterContinental Hong Kong hotel -- HICAP 'Deal of the Year (M&A)' ;
- Prudential on its sale of Prudential Vietnam Finance, a Vietnam-based consumer finance business, to Shinhan Financial Group;
- Hutchison Telecoms on its US$1.86bn sale of HGC, a fixed line telecommunications business, to I Squared Capital -- Asian Legal Business' M&A Deal of the Year, FinanceAsia's 'Hong Kong Deal of the Year';
- Global Brands on its US$1.38bn sale of a US consumer brand licensing business to Centric Brands;
- Wharf Holdings on its US$1.2bn auction sale of Wharf T&T to TPG / MBK -- IFLR Asia's 'Private Equity Deal of the Year'; and
- Tai Ping Carpets on its US$94m sale of a global commercial carpets business to Thailand Carpet Manufacturing Company Limited.
Danny Li
Partner
Hong Kong Office
55th Floor, One Island East
Taikoo Place, Quarry Bay
Hong Kong