Houlihan Lokey, Inc., a global investment bank based in Los Angeles, California, has appointed Zili Shao as senior adviser as the firm looks to further develop its financial restructuring business in Greater China.

Shao is the chairman of MountVue Capital Management, a private equity fund manager he founded in 2017. He previously served as co-chairman of King & Wood Mallesons in China, chairman and chief executive of J.P. Morgan China, vice-chairman of J.P. Morgan Asia, and managing partner of Asia-Pacific for Linklaters.

He serves as an independent director of Yum China Holdings, listed in New York and Hong Kong, as well as EDP (Energias de Portugal), listed on Euronext Lisboa. Additionally, he is a senior adviser to Clearstream Banking of Deutsche Borse Group and Fangda Partners, a leading law firm in China. He is also a member of the advisory board of Ares SSG Capital Management.

“We are delighted to welcome Mr. Shao to the firm. His appointment as a senior adviser provides the firm with access to a seasoned executive with extensive knowledge of both the Chinese financial markets and the regional business environment. I have no doubt his advice will be invaluable as we look to broaden our business in China,” comments Joseph Swanson, co-head of Houlihan Lokey Asia.

Houlihan Lokey says it has the largest worldwide financial restructuring practice of any investment banking firm, with offices and approximately 275 experienced professionals across the globe. Since its inception in 1988, the restructuring group has advised on more than 1,500 restructuring transactions with aggregate debt claims in excess of US$3 trillion.

In China, the firm is currently advising on a number of high-profile assignments, including China Evergrande Group, Fantasia Holdings Group, Kaisa Group, Logan Group, Modern Land, and Sunac China Holdings.