Herbert Smith Freehills advises joint sponsors on T.S. Lines' Hong Kong IPO

Leading international law firm Herbert Smith Freehills has advised J.P. Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Limited and China Merchants Securities (HK) Co., Limited as joint sponsors of T.S. Lines Limited (02510.HK)'s listing on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

T.S. Lines is an Asia-Pacific container shipping company, providing services from China's Greater Bay Area over the past two decades. The company is the 21st largest container shipping fleet globally, and operates sixth largest fleet in Asia Pacific.

"We congratulate T.S. Lines on its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange," said Hong Kong partner Matt Emsley. "We are delighted to have worked with the company and the sponsors on this IPO and wish them continued success."

Herbert Smith Freehills leads the legal market in advising sponsors and underwriters on Hong Kong IPOs. In 2022 and 2023, the firm advised on 17 successful listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, ranking second among 70 international and local law firms in Hong Kong, according to RyanBen Capital.

"This is another successful transaction by companies from logistics sector on which we have advised," said Stanley Xie, head of Beijing. "As the capital markets unlock, we are seeing increasing listing interest from both traditional and innovative companies."

Partners Matt Emsley, Stanley Xie and Jin Kong* jointly led a cross-office team advising the joint sponsors, assisted by senior associates Echo Shen and Brian Ge, associates Gigi Lo, Haiyun Chen*, Reagan Li and Ting Wang. Of counsel Maisie Ko, legal manager Camille Chai, trainee solicitor Christie Tsang and legal assistant Emily Wan also provided support.

Legal manager Marine Jin led Herbert Smith Freehills Kewei Joint Operation’s Digital Legal Delivery business to provide high-efficiency solutions for verification and other document-intensive processes during the listing, assisted by senior legal analyst Chloe Hu and legal analyst Chunqin Li.

*According to regulatory requirements, Jin Kong's official title is Senior Registered Foreign Lawyer in Hong Kong. Haiyun Chen's official title is Registered Foreign Lawyer.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

With more than 40 years of history in Asia, Herbert Smith Freehills provides premium legal advice on dispute resolution, projects and transactions to the world’s most important organisations operating in and from the region. In Asia, the firm advises across industry sectors and strategically important areas, including private capital, ESG, energy transition and technology and digitalisation, from offices in Bangkok, Beijing, Hong Kong, Jakarta,* Shanghai,* Singapore* and Tokyo.

*In Shanghai, the firm is part of a joint operation with Kewei, allowing access to China legal services alongside Herbert Smith Freehills' international expertise. In Jakarta, Herbert Smith Freehills' international counsel practise on secondment at its associate firm, Hiswara Bunjamin & Tandjung, one of Indonesia’s leading commercial and corporate law firms. In Singapore, Herbert Smith Freehills entered a Formal Law Alliance (FLA) with Prolegis LLC in 2015, that allows access to Prolegis' Singapore law capabilities.