May.11.2015
Orrick is advising JD.com Inc. (“JD”; NASDAQ: JD), the second largest e-commerce site in China, in its investment in Tuniu Corporation (“Tuniu”; NASDAQ: TOUR), a leading online leisure travel company in China, along with a group of investors including affiliates of Ctrip.com (NASDAQ: CTRP), DCM V, Hony Capital, Sequoia Capital and Temasek Holdings. The aggregate investment amount by all these investors is US$500 million.
Under the terms of the agreements, JD alone will purchase a total of US$350 million newly issued Class A ordinary shares of Tuniu through a combination of US$250 million in cash and US$100 million in resources. In addition, JD has entered into a strategic agreement with Tuniu, pursuant to which Tuniu will be endowed with the exclusive rights to operate the leisure travel channel for both JD’s website and mobile apps for five years without commission fees. As the preferred partner of JD for hotel and air tickets booking services, Tuniu will benefit from JD’s operation support and resources.
The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2015, subject to customary closing conditions. Upon the completion of this transaction, JD will become Tuniu’s largest shareholder.
This is JD’s second investment in Tuniu within six months. Orrick advised JD on the US$148 million investment in Tuniu with a group of investors in December 2014.
“These investments will help JD further tap into the lucrative tourism market and boost its customer base in China,” Orrick corporate partner Jie (Jeffrey) Sun commented. “We are so glad to have helped JD in its two rounds of investment in Tuniu.”
The Orrick team is led by Shanghai-based corporate partner Jie (Jeffrey) Sun, along with Shanghai-based corporate associate Lu (Echo) Wang and consultant Chen Lu.