Kenji A. Strait
Counsel
Kenji Strait is a counsel in Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati's mergers and acquisitions practice. He advises public and private clients on mergers, tender offers, asset and stock purchases, joint ventures, spin-offs, and other strategic corporate transactions. Kenji is fluent in Japanese and has represented many Japanese clients investing in the U.S.
Experience
Kenji Strait is a counsel in Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati's mergers and acquisitions practice. He advises public and private clients on mergers, tender offers, asset and stock purchases, joint ventures, spin-offs, and other strategic corporate transactions. Kenji is fluent in Japanese and has represented many Japanese clients investing in the U.S.
Education
- J.D., University of Washington
- B.A., History, Whitman College
Admissions
- State Bar of California
- State Bar of New York
Credentials
Education
- J.D., University of Washington
- B.A., History, Whitman College
Admissions
- State Bar of California
- State Bar of New York
Select Transactions
Representative Buy-Side Transactions:
- Transcarent, Inc. in its acquisition of Bridgehealth, Inc.
- Lattice Semiconductor Corporation (LSCC) in its acquisition of Mirametrix, Inc.
- Zscaler, Inc. (ZS) in its acquisition of Edgewise Networks, Inc.
- Lyft (LYFT) in its acquisition of PBSC Solutions Urbaines Inc.
- Konica Minolta, Inc. (TSE: 4902) in its acquisition of Invicro, LLC*
- Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd in its acquisition of Cullinan Pearl Corp. from Cullinan Oncology, Inc. (CGEM)
- Mastercard (MA) in its acquisition of session M, Inc.
- Newsela in its acquisition of Smartest EDU (d/b/a Formative)
- Yokohama Rubber in its acquisition of equity interests in Alliance Tire Group for $1.2 billion*
- Nisshin Seifun Group in its acquisition of assets from Cargill Corporation and ConAgra Mills, Inc. for $213 million*
- Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. in its acquisition of equity interests from Itautec
- Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories, Ltd. (TSE: 2395) in connection with its acquisition of Satsuma Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (STSA) by tender offer
Representative Sell-Side Transactions:
- HashiCorp (HCP) in its pending sale to IBM for $6.4 billion
- Cysiv in its acquisition by Forescout Technologies
- Lyft (LYFT) in the $550 million sale of its autonomous vehicle division to Toyota
- GaN Systems Inc. in its sale to Infineon Technologies AG for $830 million
- CodeObjects Inc in its sale to Insurity, LLC
- Camouflaj Inc. in its sale to Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC
- Kedalion Therapeutics Inc. in its sale to Novartis Finance Corporation
- Inspire Energy Capital LLC in its sale to Shell New Energies US LLC
Representative de-SPAC Transactions:
- SK Growth Opportunities Corporation (SKGR) in its pending business combination with Webull Corporation
- ID Experts Holdings, Inc. in its business combination with L&F Acquisition Corp. (LNFA) and ZeroFox, Inc.
- FREYR AS in its business combination with Alussa Energy Acquisition Corp. (ALUS)
- Solid Power, Inc. in its business combination with Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp III (DCRB)
Representative Joint Ventures and other Corporation Transactions:
- Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited in its formation of a joint venture with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.*
- UCC Coffee in its formation of a joint venture with Keurig (KDP) in Japan
- Kroll in connection with its issuance of a fairness opinion to Screaming Eagle Acquisition Corp. (SCRMU) in its merger with the Motion Picture and Television Studio Business of Lionsgate (LGF.A, LGF.B)
- Centerview Partners LLC in connection with its issuance of a fairness opinion to Resonant Inc. (RESN) in Resonant’s sale to Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
* Includes experience at another firm prior to returning to Wilson Sonsini in 2019.
Matters
Select Transactions
Representative Buy-Side Transactions:
- Transcarent, Inc. in its acquisition of Bridgehealth, Inc.
- Lattice Semiconductor Corporation (LSCC) in its acquisition of Mirametrix, Inc.
- Zscaler, Inc. (ZS) in its acquisition of Edgewise Networks, Inc.
- Lyft (LYFT) in its acquisition of PBSC Solutions Urbaines Inc.
- Konica Minolta, Inc. (TSE: 4902) in its acquisition of Invicro, LLC*
- Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd in its acquisition of Cullinan Pearl Corp. from Cullinan Oncology, Inc. (CGEM)
- Mastercard (MA) in its acquisition of session M, Inc.
- Newsela in its acquisition of Smartest EDU (d/b/a Formative)
- Yokohama Rubber in its acquisition of equity interests in Alliance Tire Group for $1.2 billion*
- Nisshin Seifun Group in its acquisition of assets from Cargill Corporation and ConAgra Mills, Inc. for $213 million*
- Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. in its acquisition of equity interests from Itautec
- Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories, Ltd. (TSE: 2395) in connection with its acquisition of Satsuma Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (STSA) by tender offer
Representative Sell-Side Transactions:
- HashiCorp (HCP) in its pending sale to IBM for $6.4 billion
- Cysiv in its acquisition by Forescout Technologies
- Lyft (LYFT) in the $550 million sale of its autonomous vehicle division to Toyota
- GaN Systems Inc. in its sale to Infineon Technologies AG for $830 million
- CodeObjects Inc in its sale to Insurity, LLC
- Camouflaj Inc. in its sale to Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC
- Kedalion Therapeutics Inc. in its sale to Novartis Finance Corporation
- Inspire Energy Capital LLC in its sale to Shell New Energies US LLC
Representative de-SPAC Transactions:
- SK Growth Opportunities Corporation (SKGR) in its pending business combination with Webull Corporation
- ID Experts Holdings, Inc. in its business combination with L&F Acquisition Corp. (LNFA) and ZeroFox, Inc.
- FREYR AS in its business combination with Alussa Energy Acquisition Corp. (ALUS)
- Solid Power, Inc. in its business combination with Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp III (DCRB)
Representative Joint Ventures and other Corporation Transactions:
- Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited in its formation of a joint venture with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.*
- UCC Coffee in its formation of a joint venture with Keurig (KDP) in Japan
- Kroll in connection with its issuance of a fairness opinion to Screaming Eagle Acquisition Corp. (SCRMU) in its merger with the Motion Picture and Television Studio Business of Lionsgate (LGF.A, LGF.B)
- Centerview Partners LLC in connection with its issuance of a fairness opinion to Resonant Inc. (RESN) in Resonant’s sale to Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
* Includes experience at another firm prior to returning to Wilson Sonsini in 2019.
Recent Insights
Client Highlights
Wilson Sonsini Advises HashiCorp on $6.4 Billion Acquisition by IBM
On April 24, 2024, IBM and HashiCorp Inc., a leading multi-cloud infrastructure automation company, announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which IBM will acquire HashiCorp for $35 per share in cash, representing an enterprise value of $6.4 billion. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati is advising HashiCorp on the transaction.
HashiCorp's suite of products provides enterprises with extensive Infrastructure Lifecycle Management and Security Lifecycle Management capabilities to enable organizations to automate their hybrid and multi-cloud environments. IBM’s acquisition continues its deep focus and investment in hybrid cloud and AI, the two most transformational technologies for clients today.
HashiCorp boasts a roster of more than 4,400 clients, including Bloomberg, Comcast, Deutsche Bank, GitHub, J.P Morgan Chase, Starbucks, and Vodafone. HashiCorp's offerings have widescale adoption in the developer community and are used by 85 percent of the Fortune 500. Their community products across infrastructure and security were downloaded more than 500 million times in HashiCorp's FY2024.
The boards of directors of IBM and HashiCorp have both approved the transaction, which is subject to approval by HashiCorp shareholders, regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2024.
The Wilson Sonsini team advising HashiCorp on the acquisition includes:
HashiCorp's suite of products provides enterprises with extensive Infrastructure Lifecycle Management and Security Lifecycle Management capabilities to enable organizations to automate their hybrid and multi-cloud environments. IBM’s acquisition continues its deep focus and investment in hybrid cloud and AI, the two most transformational technologies for clients today.
HashiCorp boasts a roster of more than 4,400 clients, including Bloomberg, Comcast, Deutsche Bank, GitHub, J.P Morgan Chase, Starbucks, and Vodafone. HashiCorp's offerings have widescale adoption in the developer community and are used by 85 percent of the Fortune 500. Their community products across infrastructure and security were downloaded more than 500 million times in HashiCorp's FY2024.
The boards of directors of IBM and HashiCorp have both approved the transaction, which is subject to approval by HashiCorp shareholders, regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2024.
The Wilson Sonsini team advising HashiCorp on the acquisition includes:
Learn More
Client Highlights
Wilson Sonsini Represents SK Growth Opportunities Corporation in $7.3 Billion Business Combination with Webull Corporation
On February 28, 2024, SK Growth Opportunities Corporation (SK Growth), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, and Webull Corporation (Webull), a leading digital investment platform, announced a business combination through which Webull will become a publicly listed company. The transaction values the combined business at a pro forma enterprise value of approximately $7.3 billion, assuming no further redemptions by SK Growth shareholders. A wholly-owned subsidiary of SK Inc., a leading global conglomerate based in the Republic of Korea, is the anchor investor in SK Growth’s sponsor. Webull is the owner of the popular Webull platform, which provides a full suite of financial products to 20 million registered users globally.
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