Addleshaws and Ashurst picked as favourites as GVC pitches in for Ladbrokes takeover

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Addleshaws and Ashurst picked as favourites as GVC pitches in for Ladbrokes takeover

Addleshaw Goddard and Ashurst are acting as gaming and betting company GVC Holdings launches a proposed £3.9bn takeover of rival Ladbrokes Coral.

The proposed deal, announced today (7 December), would create a global online gambling group that the boards of the two companies claim would have strong growth prospects and an enhanced position in some of the world’s largest regulated online gaming markets, including the UK, Italy and Australia. Continue reading “Addleshaws and Ashurst picked as favourites as GVC pitches in for Ladbrokes takeover”

Deal watch: HSF, Travers and Linklaters front of the queue on Intu acquisition as WFW picks up $2.3bn Asia energy project

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Deal watch: HSF, Travers and Linklaters front of the queue on Intu acquisition as WFW picks up $2.3bn Asia energy project

Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF), Travers Smith and Linklaters are all acting as retail property powerhouse Hammerson acquired its rival Intu for £3.4bn, meanwhile Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe have advised on a $2.3bn coal-fired power project in Vietnam.

Hammerson’s £3.4bn buyout of Intu will create a £21bn pan-European shopping mall giant and bring London’s Brent Cross, the Birmingham Bullring and Manchester’s Trafford Centre under single ownership. Continue reading “Deal watch: HSF, Travers and Linklaters front of the queue on Intu acquisition as WFW picks up $2.3bn Asia energy project”

Deal watch: Linklaters and White & Case in landmark Africa project as Slaughters and Macfarlanes lead on Cineworld takeover

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UK-based deal specialists were busy this week advising on cross-border transactions spanning three continents.

Linklaters and White & Case have deployed their global teams to act on a $2.73bn refinancing for an infrastructure project across two countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Continue reading “Deal watch: Linklaters and White & Case in landmark Africa project as Slaughters and Macfarlanes lead on Cineworld takeover”

Ashurst and Hogan Lovells win roles on Palmer & Harvey administration as takeover plan goes up in smoke

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City firms have landed lead mandates on the administration of beleaguered British tobacco wholesaler Palmer & Harvey (P&H) following the collapse of a rescue takeover by The Carlyle Group.

Ashurst and Hogan Lovells are advising administrator PwC, which was brought in when a sale process that would see US buyout giant Carlyle acquire the ailing business fell over. Continue reading “Ashurst and Hogan Lovells win roles on Palmer & Harvey administration as takeover plan goes up in smoke”

Deal watch: London PE teams lead on Pure Gym buyout as Freshfields doubles-up for CVC

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Established private equity players Latham & Watkins, Ropes & Gray and Travers Smith have won roles on Pure Gym’s sale from CCMP Capital to Leonard Green, while Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Morgan Lewis also picked up significant mandates this week.

The Pure Gym deal, announced today (3 November), is valued at £600m according to media reports, and follows Leonard Green’s £2.4bn acquisition of CPA Global earlier this year. Continue reading “Deal watch: London PE teams lead on Pure Gym buyout as Freshfields doubles-up for CVC”

Autumn dealwatch: Euro mega deals keep Magic Circle busy

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Autumn dealwatch: Euro mega deals keep Magic Circle busy

Freshfields and K&E act on Monarch administration

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s restructuring chief Ken Baird and finance partner Catherine Balmond led the team advising KPMG as Monarch Airlines filed for administration. Kirkland & Ellis and Reed Smith advised the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), while Stephenson Harwood acted for the Pension Protection Fund. Continue reading “Autumn dealwatch: Euro mega deals keep Magic Circle busy”

Boon for City real estate market as Eversheds Sutherland leads on largest-ever UK fund launch

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Boon for City real estate market as Eversheds Sutherland leads on largest-ever UK fund launch

In a major boon to the UK property market, recent changes to Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) have sparked a trend that saw Eversheds Sutherland advise on the largest-ever launch of a UK property fund for Royal London Asset Management (RLAM) in October.

The portfolio, worth over £2.7bn, seeded by the transfer of two existing Royal London property portfolios, includes central London properties in New Bond Street, Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square, Oxford Street and St Paul’s. With a minimum investment of £50m, it is designed to expose the UK’s commercial real estate market to institutional domestic and foreign investors. Continue reading “Boon for City real estate market as Eversheds Sutherland leads on largest-ever UK fund launch”

Deal watch: Latham and CC advise on billion-pound listing as market confidence starts to return

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Deal watch: Latham and CC advise on billion-pound listing as market confidence starts to return

Global 100 leaders lined up on two billion-pound-plus European IPOs this week, as market confidence continues to return in 2017.

Latham & Watkins and Clifford Chance advised on the IPO of TI Fluid, a year after plans to float car parts maker were shelved due to the uncertainty following Britain’s decision to leave the EU, unrest in the Middle East and the fluctuation of oil prices. Continue reading “Deal watch: Latham and CC advise on billion-pound listing as market confidence starts to return”

Freshfields and Kirkland land roles in biggest ever UK airline collapse

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Freshfields and Kirkland land roles in biggest ever UK airline collapse

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Kirkland & Ellis have won advisory roles as Monarch Airlines filed for administration in the early hours of Monday (2 October).

The job – one of the most high profile corporate failures of the year – has attracted two of the City’s top insolvency teams, with Freshfields fielding a team under its veteran restructuring chief Ken Baird. Continue reading “Freshfields and Kirkland land roles in biggest ever UK airline collapse”