Description

Synopsis

Gunderson Dettmer is the preeminent international law firm with an exclusive focus on the innovation economy. The firm serves market-leading venture capital and growth equity investors and pioneering companies through inception, growth and maturity, as well as groundbreaking public companies that result from the global venture capital ecosystem.

Find out from NUS law alumni Jolyn Ang, Soo Guo Kai and Lim Jun Heng in this fireside chat moderated by Genevieve Chia, Senior Associate Director and Career Advisor, on what venture capital lawyers do, how junior lawyers make the transition to venture capital law, and the associate experience at Gunderson Dettmer.

About the Speakers

Jolyn Ang
Senior Associate, Gunderson Dettmer

Jolyn is a dual-qualified (California and Singapore) and trilingual (English, Mandarin and Korean) venture deal lawyer who specializes in representing clients on complex cross-border transactions with an Asia ex-China nexus, particularly India, SEA and Korea, ranging from equity and debt investments, secondaries, mergers & acquisitions and reorganizations.

As a core team member of Gunderson Dettmer’s growth equity and investor-side practices in Asia, she advises several of the firm’s marquee growth equity and VC/CVC clients such as Tiger Global, Dragoneer, Prosus, Greenoaks, Lightspeed, Asia Partners, Ribbit Capital, Cathay Innovation and Insignia Ventures on their investments and divestitures in the region, and have minted numerous unicorns and decacorns in the process.

She also takes pride in being a trusted advisor to founders, and being present for them at every step of their journey, from building solid legal foundations for their startup at inception and early fundraises, to scaling up with external investors and employees, to navigating towards their dream exit. Companies she represents include SaaS Labs, Aplikasi Super, Pinhome, Kargo and Rainforest.

Prior to joining Gunderson Dettmer as one of the Singapore office’s founding members, Jolyn trained and practised at another leading international firm in its M&A practice group. She read law at the National University of Singapore on a NUS Undergraduate Scholarship and graduated on the Overall Dean’s List.

Outside of legal practice, she also plays an active role in building up the venture ecosystem in SEA by teaching and mentoring budding VCs and entrepreneurs. At the age of 30, she was one of the youngest to be appointed adjunct faculty at the Singapore Management University Lee Kong Chian School of Business, where she teaches MGMT243 Negotiating Early Stage Startup Financing, a course which she designed from scratch with Assistant Professor Kenneth Goh. She is also a mentor with the Insignia Ventures Academy, an accelerator for aspiring VCs, and the Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship.

Soo Guo Kai
Associate, Gunderson Dettmer

Guo Kai represents investors and emerging growth companies on corporate transactions at all stages of a company’s life cycle from incorporation to exit. He focuses on transactions from corporate structuring and set-up, convertible loans, cross-border debt and equity financings, M&A, joint ventures, complex cross-border transactions, secondaries, trade sales and public offerings.

Prior to joining Gunderson Dettmer, Guo Kai trained and practiced at a top Magic Circle law firm, where he advised clients on a broad range of corporate transactions including cross-border general financing, asset-back financing, corporate restructuring, acquisition financing, syndicated lending and public offerings (both debt and equity).

Guo Kai graduated with First Class Honors from the National University of Singapore on a NUS Undergraduate Scholarship, winning the top prize in the Equity and Trusts module. He also holds an LL.M. from New York University.

Guo Kai is fluent in English and Mandarin, and is admitted to practice law in Singapore and New York.

Lim Jun Heng
Legal Consultant, Gunderson Dettmer

Jun Heng assists the Singapore team with its representation of investors and emerging growth companies on corporate transactions, by drafting ancillary transaction documents, maintaining capitalization tables, and coordinating the preparation and distribution of closing volumes. Jun Heng also supports emerging growth companies with its day-to-day corporate administration.

Prior to joining Gunderson Dettmer, Jun Heng trained and practised as a litigator at a top-tier Singapore law firm, where he worked on international arbitration and litigation matters before the Singapore courts and international tribunals.

Jun Heng graduated with First Class Honors from the National University of Singapore on the prestigious full-ride NUS Merit Scholarship, and was elected president of the student body.

Jun Heng is fluent in both English and Mandarin Chinese, and is admitted to practice law in Singapore.