NEW YORK – June 5, 2025 – Global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP represented Nine Dean, a newly established holding company, in connection with its official launch, backed by a significant anchor investment from the Ford Foundation.
Founded by Aren LeeKong and a seasoned team with deep expertise across all facets of business ownership, Nine Dean is a holding company that acquires middle-market businesses and positions them for enduring success through operational excellence and investing in their most valuable asset: employees. The firm’s permanent holding company structure aligns all stakeholders and invests in employees to drive profitability across its operating companies, focused on long-term value and sustainable growth.
The Ford Foundation is an independent organization working to address inequality and build a future grounded in justice. For more than 85 years, it has supported visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement.
The Greenberg Traurig team that represented Nine Dean was led by Ejim P. Achi, Co-Chair of the firm’s Global Corporate Practice and Private Equity Practice and New York Corporate Shareholder Serena Y. Shi, and supported by Corporate Associate Aaron J. Hsieh. Other shareholders included Philip Andrew Cooke in the Tax Practice in New York and Patrick Kassen in the Investment Management Practice in New York.