Ping Yao is a partner at Global Law Office specializing in Cross-border M&A, Corporate, FDI, PE/VC, and Capital Markets.

With over 10 years of practice experience, Ping Yao has represented numerous state-owned enterprises, listed companies, multinational corporations, PE funds, and startups in various transactions such as equity and asset acquisitions, mergers and restructuring, strategic investments, equity financing, establishment of joint ventures, technical cooperation and licensing, daily operations, corporate governance, and investment exits both within and outside of China. She provides high-quality, one-stop, and full value chain legal services to a diverse range of clients.

Ping Yao possesses extensive expertise in cross-border investments, restructuring, and mergers & acquisitions, including overseas investments and direct investments by Chinese investors, Chinese companies' offshore equity financing and listing, and foreign investors' direct investments, acquisitions, operations, and collaborations in China.

She has advised numerous PE funds and industrial investors on equity investment deals and provided legal services to startups in the pharmaceutical and life sciences, new energy, semiconductor, and TMT sectors on their financing, mergers & acquisitions, cross-border intra-group restructuring, ESOPs, and daily operational matters.

Ping Yao specializes in delivering comprehensive services encompassing equity structure, business development, financing, reorganization, and mergers & acquisitions and listings. Her clients are particularly impressed by her dedication to meeting their needs, practical problem-solving skills, and keen business acumen. Throughout numerous major and complex projects, Ping Yao has provided innovative and practical comprehensive solutions and legal services to her clients.

2023-Present   Global Law Office, Partner

2021-2023       Zhong Lun Law Firm, Partner

2016-2021       King & Wood Mallesons, Senior Associate

2012-2016      Zhong Lun Law Firm, Associate

Admitted in the PRC

2012 LL.M. School of Law, Tsinghua University

2010 LL.B. School of Law, Tsinghua University

Ping Yao has been recognized by the The Legal 500 - The Asia Pacific as Rising Star and Recommended Lawyer in Corporate/M&A from 2021 to 2023.

• Member, the M&A Professional Committee, Bar Association of Beijing, PRC
• Member, the Belt and Road and International Practice Research Committee, Bar Association of Chaoyang District, Beijing PRC
• Member, the Inter-Pacific Bar Association (IPBA)
• Member of the talent pool of lawyers specializing in cross-border practice selected by the Bar Association of Beijing, PRC
• Tsinghua University Alumni Mentor

• Investment in Middle East: Overview, New Rules and Trends of Saudi Arabia's Merger Control Mechanism, Zhong Lun Vision, May 2023
• Key considerations for life science, medical and artificial intelligence enterprises since the issuance of Measures for the Examination of Science and Technology Ethics (for Trial Implementation) (Draft for Comment), Zhong Lun Vision, April 2023
• Implementing Regulation for Foreign Investment Law heralding a New Era of Foreign Investment Regime in China, KWM Academy, January 2020
• National Security Reviews: How Chinese companies investing overseas can navigate the system, KWM Academy, November 2016