Italian firm Chiomenti Studio Legale widened its Asian reach by integrating with Birindelli & Associati.

The deal will offer a host of inbound and outbound legal services such as M&A, banking & finance and capital markets advice to both Italian and Chinese clients.

"We believe that Chiomenti is the only 'top' Italian law firm with offices in Asia," said Filippo Modulo, head of the China desk in Rome.

The integration gives Chiomenti a presence in Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Hanoi and Pyongyang. BeA managing partner Luca Birindelli started his Asia practice in 1987.

"Moreover, the parallel establishment of a China desk in Italy will certainly provide Asian clients with state-of-the-art services to address the cultural gap that typically arises in cross-border transactions," said Birindelli.