Dealwatch: Global 100 advisers take centre stage on BlackRock-GIP $12.5bn mega deal

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Dealwatch: Global 100 advisers take centre stage on BlackRock-GIP $12.5bn mega deal

Skadden, Fried Frank, Kirkland and Debevoise have all taken lead advisory roles as BlackRock announced on Friday (12 January) that it will buy Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) for an eye-watering $12.5bn. The transaction will give BlackRock a total of $150bn in infrastructure assets, rocketing it to the top tier of infra funds.

The transaction sees BlackRock acquire 100% of GIP’s business and assets, which include Gatwick, London City, and Edinburgh airports as well as the Port of Melbourne and a raft of LNG assets around the world. The total deal value includes $3bn in cash and 12 million in BlackRock shares, with around 30% of the total consideration deferred, expected to be issued in approximately five years ‘subject to the satisfaction of certain post-closing events’. Continue reading “Dealwatch: Global 100 advisers take centre stage on BlackRock-GIP $12.5bn mega deal”

Dealwatch: Telegraph auction off as Barclay brothers pay off Lloyds debt with loan

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Dealwatch: Telegraph auction off as Barclay brothers pay off Lloyds debt with loan

The Telegraph and The Spectator are no longer up for auction after Abu Dhabi-backed RedBird IMI helped the Barclay family repay its £1.2bn debt to Lloyds Banking Group.

Lloyds placed Telegraph Media Group’s Bermuda-based holding company B.UK into receivership over the unpaid debt in May. AlixPartners was appointed as receiver and Aidan and Howard Barclay were removed as directors of TMG and The Spectator. Continue reading “Dealwatch: Telegraph auction off as Barclay brothers pay off Lloyds debt with loan”

Sponsored briefing: Brought to you by Virtual Vaults

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Sponsored briefing: Brought to you by Virtual Vaults

In March, Virtual Vaults attended the Corporate and M&A Summit 2023. If we learnt something from this event, it is that dealmaking in today’s volatile market brings a bunch of challenges. Virtual Vaults delivers a Virtual dealmaking platform, from due diligence preparation, to Data Room, and closing archive. We are about the here and the now in dealmaking.

As Jeroen Kruithof emphasised during the Summit, Virtual Vaults strives to lead the market rather than being the market leader. Everyone is familiar with the necessity of a VDR, but developing the right features is key for an efficient Due Diligence process. VV has always focussed on developing the best process solutions. This in combination with our intuitive User Interface, has resulted in an excellent client experience thus becoming the market leader in the Benelux. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Brought to you by Virtual Vaults”

‘It means business in London’: V&E takes Hogan Lovells’ Higson as City corporate head

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‘It means business in London’: V&E takes Hogan Lovells’ Higson as City corporate head

Hogan Lovells’ London M&A partner Ben Higson has been appointed as Vinson & Elkins’ London head of corporate.  

He takes up the role after 15 years at Hogan Lovells, including eight years as head of the corporate team. He also served as an elected member of the firm’s global management board between 2014 and 2020.

Continue reading “‘It means business in London’: V&E takes Hogan Lovells’ Higson as City corporate head”

Deal Watch: activity powers on as Latham and A&O lead on $19bn energy joint venture

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Deal Watch: activity powers on as Latham and A&O lead on $19bn energy joint venture

Despite the inevitable slowdown in the spring following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, deal activity rebounded over the summer with an unusually busy August. Latham & Watkins, Kirkland & Ellis and the magic circle were among the firms taking the lead on billion-pound private equity, energy and tech deals.

Latham advised EIG on its $4.8bn acquisition of a 25% stake in Repsol Upstream, a newly formed global exploration and production company comprising the entire global upstream oil and gas business of Spanish energy company Repsol. Continue reading “Deal Watch: activity powers on as Latham and A&O lead on $19bn energy joint venture”

Sponsored survey: Maximising compliance and minimising risk: corporate investigations in the DACH region

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Sponsored survey: Maximising compliance and minimising risk: corporate investigations in the DACH region

Renewed commitment among US agencies to punishing corporate wrongdoing has pushed investigations to the top of the risk register. We partnered with OpenText to find out how this is impacting GCs in the DACH region

In September 2021 the video games industry suddenly found itself in the spotlight after allegations of sexual misconduct and discrimination at Activision Blizzard – one of the biggest publishers in the world and the target of Microsoft’s largest-ever acquisition – sparked investigation by US regulators. Coming just months after a new Biden administration had pledged to crack down on the full spectrum of corporate wrongdoing, it was a timely reminder of the many and varied investigations risks now faced by global business. Continue reading “Sponsored survey: Maximising compliance and minimising risk: corporate investigations in the DACH region”

Dealwatch: Latham and Linklaters bet on £2.2bn William Hill disposal as £1.2bn easyJet rights issue flies

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Dealwatch: Latham and Linklaters bet on £2.2bn William Hill disposal as £1.2bn easyJet rights issue flies

While it could hardly be said to have slowed down over summer, the deal market has nevertheless ramped up since the beginning of September with easyJet’s £1.2bn rights issue and Caesars’ £2.2bn disposal of William Hill’s international business among the more high-profile recent transactions.

Latham & Watkins and Linklaters won lead roles as 888 Holdings agreed to acquire the international business – the non-US assets – of William Hill at an enterprise value of £2.2bn. Continue reading “Dealwatch: Latham and Linklaters bet on £2.2bn William Hill disposal as £1.2bn easyJet rights issue flies”

Dealwatch: Sign of the times for advisers on Priory Group and vegan foods deals

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Dealwatch: Sign of the times for advisers on Priory Group and vegan foods deals

Innovative, Covid-driven transactions have continued to emerge in recent months, with the first working week of 2021 proving no exception. As many embark on ‘Veganuary’ after the meaty excesses of the holiday season, a timely deal has been the acquisition by LIVEKINDLY Collective, a collection of plant-based food companies, of No Meat, Iceland Foods’ vegan meat alternative company.

Also topical, given the increasing challenges to mental health imposed by the pandemic, is a deal that sees Acadia Healthcare Company sell its UK business – which operates as The Priory Group – to Waterland Private Equity for £1.08bn. Continue reading “Dealwatch: Sign of the times for advisers on Priory Group and vegan foods deals”

Dealwatch: $39bn AstraZeneca deal caps off pharma boom year as advisers secure roles on G4S bidding war

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Dealwatch: $39bn AstraZeneca deal caps off pharma boom year as advisers secure roles on G4S bidding war

News over the weekend of AstraZeneca’s $39bn deal to acquire Alexion Pharmaceuticals has capped off the 2020 pharma boom in style with what has been touted as the largest acquisition of a US target company and the largest acquisition financing of the year.

Elsewhere, advisers benefited from another big-ticket transaction as the bidding war for security services company G4S ramped up with a bid from Allied Universal, and an equity valuation of £3.8bn.  Continue reading “Dealwatch: $39bn AstraZeneca deal caps off pharma boom year as advisers secure roles on G4S bidding war”