Seven global elite firms have been called in to advise as EQT takes German-founded molecular testing company QIAGEN private in a deal that values the company at €10.8bn.
The bidder is a holding company indirectly owned by the EQT XI fund, with institutional investors the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP) also behind the transaction.
Milbank, Clifford Chance, and De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek all had roles on the deal, while Legal Business understands that Paul Weiss, Linklaters, Freshfields, and Davis Polk also advised.
Milbank took the lead on the buy-side, advising the bidder with a team led by corporate finance partner Phillip Klockner in Frankfurt, alongside Germany corporate head Steffen Oppenländer and corporate partner Christoph Rothenfusser in Munich.
The wider team included tax partner Thomas Kleinheisterkamp, regulatory partner Alexander Rinne and finance Barbara Mayer-Trautmann, also in Munich. In the US, advisors included corporate partners Iliana Ogun and Brett Nadrtich and litigation partner Nathaniel Browand in New York, and national security partner Bijan Ganji in Washington DC.
Milbank has a long-standing relationship with the Swedish PE house, and is on its gold panel.
An all-London team from fellow gold panel firm Paul Weiss advised the bidder on financing aspects of the deal. This comprised European leveraged finance head Taner Hassan and finance partner Silvia Menendez, alongside European capital markets head Matthew Markle and capital markets partner Deidre Jones.
Hassan and Menendez are set to move back to Clifford Chance in the coming weeks, after both joined Paul Weiss from CC in 2024.
Clifford Chance is also on the deal, advising co-investor Luxinva – a wholly owned subsidiary of ADIA.
The firm’s team included corporate partners Thomas Krecek in Frankfurt, Christian Vogel and Dominik Heß in Düsseldorf, Samuel Frommelt in Munich, and Lynn Ammar in Abu Dhabi, as well as City PE partner Bruce Embley.
Corporate partner Jan-Hendrik Horsmeier and PE partner Ernst van der Touw in Amsterdam advised on Dutch law aspects of the deal, while Dimitri Slobodenjuk in Düsseldorf and Philipp Girardet in London advised on antitrust.
Also involved were tax partners Richard Kalaher in London, Dominik Engl in Frankfurt, and Michiel Sunderman in Amsterdam, while Frankfurt partner Axel Wittman and Luxembourg partner Stephanie Ferring provided additional support.
LB understands that Freshfields was also called in for the deal, advising CPP Investment Board Europe, a wholly owned subsidiary of CPP Investments.
For QIAGEM, Dutch firm De Brauw fielded a team led by corporate M&A head Arne Grimme and M&A partner Frank Hamming, both based in Amsterdam.
LB understands that Linklaters Germany senior partner Staffan Illert and Davis Polk M&A partner Michael Gibson were also instructed as local counsel, based in Düsseldorf and New York respectively.
Founded in Germany and officially headquartered in the Netherlands, QIAGEN is listed on both the NYSE and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, and provides technologies for genetic material analysis, life-sciences tools and bioinformatics.
In a statement, QIAGEN emphasised greater strategic flexibility, faster innovation and additional growth as reasons for the deal.
‘Under private ownership, we can move faster and have greater freedom to put resources behind the most attractive opportunities that align best with our long-term strategy,’ said CEO Jonathan M. Pratt.
EQT has €354 billion AUM and roughly €30bn invested in healthcare companies globally.
Global co-head of healthcare Michael Bauer said in a statement: ‘This is a landmark transaction for EQT and a powerful reflection of the deep sector understanding, investment experience and network of expertise we have built over the last three decades.
‘QIAGEN sits at the heart of modern life sciences and diagnostics, and we are thrilled to partner with it.’
The transaction is expected to close in mid-2027, subject to shareholder approval and customary regulatory clearances.
