Singapore – LAWFUEL – International law firm Clifford Chance has recently advised Gems TV Holdings (Gems TV) on its recent S$354.92 million initial public offering on the Singapore Stock Exchange, the fourth largest IPO in Singapore in 2006. Shares were offered to qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) in the US in reliance on Rule 144A of the Securities Act and to non-US persons under Regulation S.
The IPO was underwritten by Credit Suisse and DBS Bank.
Gems TV is currently the leading dedicated home shopping retailer of gemstone jewellery in the UK and is expanding to new markets in the US, Japan, the PRC and Germany.
The company sells its own handcrafted gemstone jewellery directly to customers via television as well as the internet through a unique “reverse auction” system. The company operates jewellery manufacturing facilities in Thailand, one of the world’s leading centres for processing gemstones.
Joan Janssen, the Singapore-based partner who led the Clifford Chance team advising on the deal, commented:
“We were delighted to have advised Gems TV on its IPO in Singapore. Despite the lack of direct comparables and external shocks, such as the coup in Thailand, the company made an impressive debut on the Singapore Stock Exchange and we were happy to have been involved in this very successful IPO.”
The Clifford Chance team in Singapore consisted of partners Joan Janssen and Crawford Brickley, senior associate Johannes Juette and associate Ong Hui Ting. They were assisted by partner Andrew Matthews and counsel Angela Nobthai from Clifford Chance’s Bangkok office.
