Hai Ha

Hai Ha

Counsel

Email

hai.ha@aoshearman.com

Phone

+84 28 6288 4920

Offices

Ho Chi Minh City

V-CARD
Hai is a seasoned lawyer advising clients on inbound private and public M&A transactions as well as joint ventures, cross-border commercial contracts and corporate governance matters, including compliance and anti-corruption.

His particular emphasis is on real estate and real estate M&A. His experience extends across a broad range of sectors such as education, healthcare, consumer and retail, F&B, financial services, and thermal and renewable power. He routinely advises multi-nationals, domestic and offshore corporations, private capital firms, financial institutions, real estate developers and energy companies in navigating through the Vietnamese legal framework to achieve their strategic and financial objectives in the market.

With over 15 years of experience, clients value his pragmatic and commercial approach, and he is recognized as a “Rising Star” for Corporate and M&A in Vietnam by Legal 500 2024.

Expertise

Experience

Representative matters

  • KKR on its USD650m investment in Vinhomes (one of Vietnam’s leading real estate developers), EQuest Education Group (an education platform), KiotViet (a leading merchant platform for micro and SMEs), and Masan Group (one of Vietnam’s largest conglomerates) and its subsidiaries.
  • Kinh Do Corporation on its USD465m sale of its confiness to Mondelez International, the world’s leading snack company.
  • EQT Private Capital Asia (f/k/a Baring Private Equity Asia) on (i) a USD400m investment by a consortium led by it and Alibaba in The CrownX, the integrated consumer retail arm of Masan Group. Best M&A Deal (Vietnam), The Asset Triple A Country Awards 2021; (ii) its investment in the Vietnam USA Society International JSC, an education business in Vietnam.
  • Thai Beverage Plc (ThaiBev) on its USD4.8bn acquisition of a majority stake in Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corporation (Sabeco), Vietnam’s largest brewer, via a competitive offering process. The transaction represents Vietnam’s biggest privatization to date.
  • ESR, Asia’s largest APAC focused logistics real estate platform, on its joint venture with BW Industrial Development JSC, the leading logistics and industrial real estate developer and operator in Vietnam, for the development of an industrial park in Ho Chi Minh City. Gaw Capital in relation to several property projects in Vietnam, including the USD1.2bn joint venture to develop the 86-storey Thu Thiem Observation Tower in Ho Chi Minh City.
  • Sumitomo Corporation on the USD4.2b next-generation "smart city" in Hanoi, Vietnam. CapitaLand on its S$81.4m (approx USD59.4m equivalent) acquisition of a prime residential site in District 2 of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
  • United Overseas Bank Limited (UOB) on the Vietnam aspects of its acquisition of Citigroup’s consumer banking franchise in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand for approximately SGD4.915 billion.
  • JERA on its acquisition of an equity interest in Vietnam-based Gia Lai Electricity Joint Stock Company, a renewable energy platform listed on the HOSE.
  • VietJet, Vietnam’s leading international low-cost airline, on its innovative, ground-breaking USD170m initial public offering on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange.
  • Thanh Thanh Cong Investment on its sale of a controlling stake in TTC Education, a Vietnamese private education platform, to Navis Capital Partners.
  • Ageas on the formation of a bancassurance joint venture company in Vietnam with Muang Thai Life Assurance and Military Bank.
  • Sembcorp on its USD160.3m acquisition of majority interests ranging from 73% to 100% in various subsidiaries of Gelex. The transaction will add 245MW of operational wind, solar and hydropower assets to Sembcorp's current portfolio in Vietnam. 

Recognition

“Hai Ha provides pragmatic and commercial advice to clients navigating the Vietnamese legal framework”
Legal 500 Asia Pacific (Corporate and M&A - Vietnam), 2024

Qualifications

Admissions

Admitted to the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, Vietnam, 2013

Academic

LL.M, International Commercial Law, University of Dundee, United Kingdom, 2014

LL.B, Ho Chi Minh City Law School, Vietnam, 2006

Disclaimer
A&O Shearman was formed on May 1, 2024 by the combination of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Allen & Overy LLP and their respective affiliates (the legacy firms). Any matters referred to above may include matters undertaken by one or more of the legacy firms rather than A&O Shearman.