Haynes Boone represented Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (AOI) as issuer’s counsel in its offering of approximately $80.2 million of 5.25% Convertible Senior Notes due in 2026. AOI is a leader in the field of optical and laser technology with manufacturing facilities across the globe, including in Texas, Taiwan and China. The company is transforming communication through advanced optical devices, including fiber optic transceivers, as well as its portfolio of products that enable high-speed broadband internet access for consumers and businesses.
The offering closed on Dec. 5, 2023, and generated net proceeds to AOI of approximately $76 million, after deducting the initial purchasers’ discounts and estimated offering expenses payable by AOI. The company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to pay the cash portion of the consideration in certain exchange transactions with respect to AOI’s existing 5.00% Convertible Senior Notes due 2024.
Haynes Boone Partners Frank Wu, Stephen Grant and Monika Sanford led the deal team representing AOI in the transaction. They were assisted by Partners Bruce Newsome and Sam Lichtman and Associates Taylor West, Kierra Jones and Sawyer Smith.
Wu has represented start-up companies in successful IPOs and has worked with many business leaders on strategic alliances, mergers and acquisitions. He also co-chairs the firm’s Greater China Practice Group, representing both U.S. and Chinese companies on domestic and cross-border transactions.
The Haynes Boone Capital Markets and Securities Group provides comprehensive advice to clients traded on all major U.S. securities exchanges, “over-the-counter” markets, and many foreign markets, on a full range of securities transactions and reporting matters. The group has helped companies raise capital and comply with evolving securities laws and practices for more than four decades.
About Haynes Boone
Founded in 1970, Haynes Boone provides a full spectrum of legal services across multiple sectors, including energy, financial services, private equity and technology. The firm’s nearly 700 lawyers practice in 19 offices in California, Colorado, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C., as well as London, Mexico City and Shanghai. Haynes Boone was recognized in the 2022 BTI Consulting Group’s A-Team report, which identified firms commended by in-house counsel for superior client service, and it was ranked 21st in The American Lawyer’s 2023 Diversity Scorecard, which evaluated 228 participating firms by the diversity of their attorney populations. For more information, visit haynesboone.com.
