Francois Tung specialises in technology and IP matters, covering a broad practice involving contentious and non-contentious work.
Francois has subject matter expertise on regulatory and compliance issues relating to digital economy, data privacy, media, telecom, cybersecurity, AI as well as employment.
Francois mainly acts for clients in the TMT market and financial services sector. He is recognised as a “key lawyer” in the TMT category by Legal 500 since 2022. Francois takes an industry sector focus in his practice and his clients mainly consist of players in the technology, manufacturing and financial services fields. Francois fully understands the industry and the challenges that his clients face and is therefore able to provide advice which aims at resolving the strategic and commercial pressure of his clients.
Francois is fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin. He is also qualified to practise in the Greater Bay Area of the PRC since 2022.
Key experience
IT contracts
- Mandatory Provident Fund Scheme Authority (MPFA): advised on the tendering, procurement and implementation of the eMPF Platform – an ambitious IT project worth over HK$3bn to standardize, streamline and automate the existing administration processes of the social security system in Hong Kong.
- OneConnect Financial Technology: advised on (i) a suite of contracts including MOU, Implementation Agreement, SaaS Agreement and Professional Services Agreement in relation to their implementation of a FinTech product for a financial institution and insurance group in South Africa; and (ii) implementation of a credit model for a Hong Kong bank (on SaaS basis) in relation to that bank’s loan business.
- An investment bank: advised on its significant hybrid outsourcing and out-tasking of IT support services to a major Japanese technology services provider (estimated annual operational service charges at US$3.6M).
Regulatory (TMT, data privacy)
- A global technology company: advised on the GBA-HK cross-border data transfer measures and its implications to its cloud services customers and (ii) drafted a guide in respect of export of personal data out of China for its customers in light of PRC’s New Cross-Border Data Regulations.
- Baidu: advised on personal data compliance issues arising from collection of personal data for use in its navigation and mapping services in Hong Kong.
- Hong Kong Science and Technology Park: advised on the pilot launch of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong cross-boundary data validation platform. The platform utilises blockchain technology and cryptography for document verification without involving any cross-boundary transfer or storage of the original documents.
- A leading cosmetics and personal care products group: advised on collection and processing of PRC domiciled customers data in Hong Kong and establishment of a centralised customer relationship management database.
- Luckin Coffee: advised on their establishment and operation of unmanned coffee business in Hong Kong. A full spectrum of legal support: business/customer contracts, data privacy (collection and processing of personal data through its proprietary App), food & safety regulatory (licensing and import permit), employment and work visa.
- Christian Dior: advised on its establishment of a Hong Kong online shopping platform and revamp of its retail POS system.
IP
- Guolian Capital (国联资本): advised on the Series Pre-B and Series B financing in Ronovo Surgical, a Shanghai-based medical technology developer of surgical robotics for soft tissue procedures (deal size: US$44M)
- Winner Medical (稳健医疗): advised on the Hong Kong law aspects in respect of two investments in (i) a global healthcare manufacturer of medical devices and personal protective equipment; (ii) Global Resources International, Inc., a global manufacturer of protective products for the medical and non-medical markets (deal size: US$120M)
- Orange Sky Golden Harvest: advised on acquiring exclusive IP rights (including know-how) from a Dutch theatrical live entertainment production company for exploitation of a revolving stage technology known as “StageAround” in China. This involved conducting due diligence at The Netherlands.
- A world-renowned transportation operator: advised on its JV with a biomedical technology company to develop further iterations of VHP disinfection robots and other disinfection technologies for use in the public transportation domain. Deal structure involves transfer of IP rights to JV Co and licensing back such rights to shareholders for commercialisation (royalties chargeable)
- A purchaser: acquisition of the domain “crypto.com”, value of which is among top 10 of domain name transactions publicly reported.
Employment
- A Hong Kong based airline: comprehensive advisory on employment, immigration, residency and tax issues in relation to hiring of cabin crew from the Greater Bay Area.
- The biggest employer of medical staff (by headcount) in Hong Kong: ongoing retainer advising on a diverse range of employment related issues, including: COVID-19 vaccination policy enforcement, discrimination and harassment claims, enforceability of post-termination restrictions, handling of Labour Tribunal proceedings.
