Another big-dollar mandate for Travers as Micro Focus sells software business to EQT

Posted on |
Another big-dollar mandate for Travers as Micro Focus sells software business to EQT

Extending beyond its reputation for outstanding mid-market deal work, Travers Smith has once again put its name to a multibillion-dollar deal as IT company Micro Focus sells its open-source software business SUSE for $2.5bn.

Swedish private equity group EQT Partners is on the other side of the table and turned to US giants Latham & Watkins and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy to advise on the acquisition. Continue reading “Another big-dollar mandate for Travers as Micro Focus sells software business to EQT”

Eversheds wins key Rolls-Royce mandate as Norwegian group lands marine business

Posted on |
Eversheds wins key Rolls-Royce mandate as Norwegian group lands marine business

Nigel Cooke leads the team advising the UK giant on its £500m sale

Engineering giant Rolls-Royce turned to long-term adviser Eversheds Sutherland for the £500m sale of its unprofitable commercial marine division to Nordic technology company Kongsberg Gruppen. Continue reading “Eversheds wins key Rolls-Royce mandate as Norwegian group lands marine business”

Freshfields and King & Spalding secure mandates as Equitable Life completes its turnaround with £1.8bn sale

Posted on |
Freshfields and King & Spalding secure mandates as Equitable Life completes its turnaround with £1.8bn sale

Equitable Life put pensions at risk when it nearly collapsed in 2000. But 18 years on it has completed its turnaround with Life Company Consolidation Group (LCCG) agreeing to acquire the UK’s oldest life assurer for £1.8bn.

Equitable Life turned to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, which fielded a team led by corporate insurance partner George Swan and included restructuring and insolvency specialists Neil Golding and Craig Montgomery. Continue reading “Freshfields and King & Spalding secure mandates as Equitable Life completes its turnaround with £1.8bn sale”

Deal watch: HFW acts for Greek government on major state sell-off while US firms score heavyweight mandates

Posted on |
Deal watch: HFW acts for Greek government on major state sell-off while US firms score heavyweight mandates

In a deal of major national significance, Holman Fenwick Willan (HFW) and Clifford Chance (CC) have advised the Greek state on the €535m privatisation of its gas network. Meanwhile US leaders  Kirkland & Ellis, Weil Gotshal & Manges and Jones Day have also acted on substantial buyouts recently.

The sale of the natural gas transmission system operator, DESFA, is part of Greece’s wider strategy of disposing assets to reduce the country’s debt following the financial crisis. The deal implies a total equity value for DESFA of €810m. Continue reading “Deal watch: HFW acts for Greek government on major state sell-off while US firms score heavyweight mandates”

Global elite joins Japanese and offshore heavyweights as Takeda persists with Shire bid

Posted on |
Global elite joins Japanese and offshore heavyweights as Takeda persists with Shire bid

Life sciences giant puts £46bn offer on table for Irish rival

Magic Circle duo Slaughter and May and Linklaters have been joined by Davis Polk & Wardwell and Ashurst in landing key mandates as Japanese giant Takeda Pharmaceutical Company launched a £46bn takeover of Shire last month. Continue reading “Global elite joins Japanese and offshore heavyweights as Takeda persists with Shire bid”

Rich pickings for Travers Smith and Freshfields as Bridgepoint cashes in on Pret

Posted on |
Rich pickings for Travers Smith and Freshfields as Bridgepoint cashes in on Pret

Ten years after acquiring Pret A Manger in a deal worth £350m, private equity house Bridgepoint is selling it for more than four times its original investment and providing City firms with big mandates.

Luxembourg-headquartered JAB Holding Company, an investment firm owned by Germany’s Reimann family, is to buy the food chain for £1.5bn. Continue reading “Rich pickings for Travers Smith and Freshfields as Bridgepoint cashes in on Pret”

Magic Circle duo secure key mandates as Novartis sells its €13bn stake to GSK

Posted on |
Magic Circle duo secure key mandates as Novartis sells its €13bn stake to GSK

Slaughter and May and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have landed pivotal roles on a $13bn deal which sees GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) acquire the remaining 36.5% stake in its consumer healthcare joint venture with fellow pharma giant Novartis.

Slaughters is advising GSK with a team comprising corporate partners Simon Nicholls and David Johnson, alongside tax specialist Dominic Robertson, competition partner Bertrand Louveaux, and finance partners Guy O’Keefe and Oliver Storey. Meanwhile Freshfields is advising Novartis, fielding a team led by corporate partners Julian Long and Jennifer Bethlehem, accompanied by tax partner Paul Davison and antitrust partner Rod Carlton. The in-house legal team at GSK was led by senior vice president and head of legal corporate functions Chip Cale, and associate general counsel Antony Braithwaite. Continue reading “Magic Circle duo secure key mandates as Novartis sells its €13bn stake to GSK”

Dealwatch: Transactional teams move into gear in strong spring showing

Posted on |
Dealwatch: Transactional teams move into gear in strong spring showing
  • Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) (pictured) has secured a key corporate role for engineering company and long-term client The Weir Group on the $1.3bn acquisition of US mining equipment manufacturer ESCO Corporation. London corporate partner Mike Flockhart is heading the HSF team, alongside City competition partner Kim Dietzel. Sullivan & Cromwell is advising Weir on US law, led by corporate partners Matt Hurd and Scott Crofton. Meanwhile Oregon-based law firm Stoel Rives is advising ESCO on the deal.
  • Ropes & Gray has advised Nordic Capital on the transfer of its 2008 vintage fund’s remaining nine unlisted portfolio companies to a continuation vehicle in a €2.5bn transaction. The team was led by investment funds partner Matthew Judd in London. Meanwhile Kirkland & Ellis also advised the private equity investor with a team led by Theodore Cardos and Anand Damodaran. The team also included investment funds partners Michael Belsley, Richard Watkins and Christopher Braunack, regulatory partners Lisa Cawley and Adam Skinner, antitrust partners Ellen Jakovic, Mike Robert-Smith and Michael Thorpe, and employee benefits partner Elizabeth Dyer. Offshore law firm Carey Olsen’s funds partner Daniel O’Connor and corporate partner Guy Coltman also acted on the deal.

Continue reading “Dealwatch: Transactional teams move into gear in strong spring showing”

Dealwatch: International elite face off in European and transatlantic mega transactions

Posted on |
Dealwatch: International elite face off in European and transatlantic mega transactions
  • Latham & Watkins advised Global Infrastructure Partners on the €1.94bn buyout of Italian railway operator Italo-Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori. London partner David Walker (pictured), Italy managing partner Antonio Coletti and Milan partners Stefano Sciolla and Giovanni Sandicchi all advised the US investor as it acquired 100% of the group. Slaughter and May’s Italian ally BonelliErede advised the seller, under the leadership of partners Carlo Montagna and Elena Busson.
  • Further north, Baker McKenzie, Clifford Chance (CC) and Allen & Overy (A&O) have all advised on the $6.6bn acquisition of Danish phone carrier TDC by a consortium that includes Australian infrastructure giant Macquarie, as well as three local pension funds. Bakers
    London corporate partners Tim Sheddick and James Thompson advised long-term client Macquarie. CC advised the consortium on debt financing. A&O London partner Jonathan Brownson spearheaded the team acting on behalf of the lenders, alongside partners Matt Moore and Jake Keaveny.

Continue reading “Dealwatch: International elite face off in European and transatlantic mega transactions”

Deal watch: Magic Circle gets clean bill to lead on $13bn GSK healthcare takeover as Addleshaw ties up JD Sports US acquisition

Posted on |
Deal watch: Magic Circle gets clean bill to lead on $13bn GSK healthcare takeover as Addleshaw ties up JD Sports US acquisition

Magic Circle firms Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Slaughter and May have rejuvenated longstanding client relationships to win lead roles on Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Novartis’ $13bn sale to GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) of its minority stake in their consumer healthcare joint venture.

The deal, announced on today (27 March), sees London-listed GSK buy the 36.5% stake in the joint venture it didn’t already own from Novartis to assume full control of the business. Continue reading “Deal watch: Magic Circle gets clean bill to lead on $13bn GSK healthcare takeover as Addleshaw ties up JD Sports US acquisition”