Founded in 1981, Shin & Kim is a Korean full-service law firm based in Seoul with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi and Jakarta. The firm has over 700 professionals comprising domestic and foreign lawyers, accountants, patent attorneys and tax accountants.
Focusses / specialisms
The firm has strengths in banking and finance and capital markets. The firm remains active in M&A and project development.
Key clients
Key clients of the firm include BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, Novelis Inc., Korea Trade Insurance Corporation,
Citibank, Commerzbank, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Koramco, Kurly and Chubb.
Research period review:
33rd edition (2022/2023)
During the research period, the firm was active in multiple practice areas ranging from banking and finance to restructuring and insolvency.
The finance team was particularly active in acquisition financing, acting as advisers to the largest acquisition financings in Korea in 2021 including KRW3 trillion (approximately $2.7 billion) financing extended to SK Hynix for its acquisition of Intel’s SSD business and Dalian NAND Flash Manufacturing Facility in China. The team also continued to be active in equity and debt financing-related advice and services, including project finance, acquisition finance, ship finance, real estate finance, and debt market investments. The banking and finance team added new partners Ji Hoon Kim, Jongki Kim and senior partner Mooil Moon.
In capital markets, the firm was preoccupied with REITs offerings and large-scale IPOs. The firm was also active in the debt capital market, advised on the first overseas issuance of Tier 2 subordinated securities by a Korean insurance company and the first overseas issuance of Tier 1 perpetual sustainability subordinated capital securities by a Korean insurance company in 2022.
In the M&A sector, the firm kept busy with high-profile cross-border transactions cooperating with their regional practices across the globe. In 2022, the firm bolstered its corporate team with new foreign attorneys Chung-In Anthony Choi, James Kang and new partners Hyun Kim, Sangmin Lee, Yeon Woo Choi, and Chaewon Kang.
In the project space, the firm continued to be active in the energy sector including renewables. Partner Hong-Hwa Jeong and Sangmyoung Shin joined the project team in 2023.
Deal highlights: 33rd edition (2022/2023)
$3 billion KEXIM covered global financing.
Koramco The One REIT’s RW97.5 billion IPO and listing on the KOSPI Market.
Kakao Mobility's IPO and listing on the KOSPI Market of the Korea Exchange.
8percent’s $100 million P2P loan securitization.
Chubb’s $5.75 billion acquisition of LINA Life Insurance of Korea, Cigna Korea and LINA Financial Service.
The $300 million financing of the construction of Hana Micron’s semiconductor
packaging plant in Brazil.
