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Transactions UK
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September 06, 2024
UK Regulators Back Nationwide's £2.9B Deal For Virgin Money
Two U.K. financial regulators have given their consent for Nationwide Building Society's £2.9 billion ($3.8 billion) acquisition of Virgin Money UK PLC, the lenders said Friday.
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September 06, 2024
Infrastructure Investor INPP To Extend Buyback To £60M
International Public Partnerships Ltd. has unveiled plans to boost its original £30 million ($39.5 million) ongoing share repurchase program, which was co-advised by Hogan Lovells, to £60 million in anticipation of a funding injection from asset divestment.
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September 06, 2024
City Task Force Calls For Shake-Up Of UK Capital Markets
The U.K. must encourage risk-taking in its capital markets in order to remain competitive in the global stage and help fund £1 trillion ($1.32 trillion) of fresh investment needed to hit economic targets, a task force of City heavyweights said on Friday.
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September 06, 2024
Hill Dickinson-Led Building Biz Raises £11M With Share Sale
Construction-labor supplier Hercules said Friday that it has raised £11 million ($14.5 million) through a share sale program as it seeks to raise money to fund mergers and acquisitions amid signs of recovery in the building sector.
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September 05, 2024
Investors Claim £12.6M Bank Investment Started With A Lie
An investment company and its owner have sued two business partners for more than £12.6 million ($16.6 million) paid to set up a specialist bank, accusing the pair of lying by saying less than half that amount would be needed to get the bank off the ground.
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September 05, 2024
UK Housebuilder Vistry To Return £130M More To Investors
Vistry Group PLC said Thursday it will launch an up to £130 million share buyback program this month in line with its ambitions to distribute a targeted £1 billion to investors over three years.
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September 05, 2024
Associated British Foods To Extend Buyback By £100M
Kingsmill bread and bakery products owner Associated British Foods PLC said Thursday that it will extend its existing £500 million ($658 million) share buyback program by another £100 million as it expects to generate strong sales this year.
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September 05, 2024
Slaughter And May-Led Asos To Sell Topshop Stake For £135M
British fashion retailer Asos said Thursday that it has agreed to sell 75% of its Topshop and Topman brands to Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen's investment company Heartland for £135 million ($177.7 million) in a deal led by Slaughter and May.
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September 12, 2024
Bird & Bird Recruits M&A Partner In Frankfurt Amid Growth
Bird & Bird LLP has hired a business expert as a partner in Frankfurt as the firm bolsters its growing corporate practice internationally, with a keen eye on its new office in Japan.
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September 05, 2024
Irish Housebuilder To Roll Out €50M Share Buyback
Glenveagh Properties PLC said on Thursday that it will reward investors with a share repurchase program worth as much as €50 million ($55 million) as the Irish homebuilder reported a hit to its revenue.
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September 05, 2024
Surge In Pension Deal Demand Expected In 2nd Half Of 2024
There is likely to be a record number of transactions in the U.K. pensions market in 2024, according to a study published Thursday by accounting giant PwC, despite what many have described as a slower start to the year.
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September 05, 2024
Freshfields-Led Tech Co. To Buy Sensor Biz For €133M
Spectris said Thursday that it has bought a subsidiary of AVL List, an Austrian automotive testing company, for €133.5 million ($148.1 million), as the U.K. precision tools supplier aims to bolster its market position in the auto, aerospace and industrial sectors.
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September 05, 2024
UK Probes Acerinox's $800M Bid For Haynes International
Britain's antitrust authority said Thursday that it has launched a formal investigation into the planned $798 million takeover by stainless steel manufacturer Acerinox of Haynes International, which makes alloys, to assess whether the deal would weaken domestic competition.
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September 05, 2024
CVC Raises €7.4B Of Capital In 1st Results After Listing
European private equity firm CVC Capital Partners PLC said Thursday that it has raised €7.4 billion ($8.2 billion) in fresh capital during the first six months of 2024 as it published its first set of results since its €2 billion flotation in Amsterdam.
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September 11, 2024
Hausfeld Snaps Up Litigation Pro From Covington In London
Hausfeld LLP has hired a partner from Covington & Burling LLP in London to boost its profile in commercial disputes, after its office in the U.K. capital recently underwent changes in leadership.
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September 04, 2024
Broker Clear Buys 4th Specialist Underwriter
Insurance broker Clear has acquired specialist underwriter Accelerate Underwriting for an undisclosed amount to grow its managing general agent capabilities.
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September 04, 2024
Microsoft Hiring Of Inflection AI Team Too Small To Worry UK
The U.K.'s antitrust regulator said Wednesday it has ended its probe into Microsoft's hiring of Inflection AI staff, finding the U.S. machine learning specialist's operation was too small to trigger competition concerns.
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September 04, 2024
Irish Hotelier Dalata To Launch €30M Share Buyback
Dalata Hotel Group PLC said Wednesday it will soon begin an up to €30 million ($33 million) share repurchase program aimed at lowering its outstanding share capital, as it reported an improvement in its revenue.
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September 04, 2024
EU Scrambles To Close Competition Gap After Illumina Ruling
The Europe Union's highest court has left the bloc's antitrust authorities struggling to find a way to close an enforcement gap that could make it easier for dominant companies to neutralize startups with its decision that the European Commission had no authority to probe Illumina’s $8 billion acquisition of Grail.
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September 04, 2024
Investment Biz Sells Stake In UK Rival For Up To $258M
Petershill Partners PLC, an investment business operated by Goldman Sachs, said Wednesday it has completed the sale of its entire stake in investment manager LMR Partners in a deal worth up to $258 million.
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September 04, 2024
Slaughter And May Leads REIT In £552M Logistics Biz Buy
Segro said Wednesday that it has agreed to buy Tritax EuroBox, a logistics property investor, in an all-share deal worth approximately £552 million ($724 million), as the corporate real estate owner moves to expand and diversify its portfolio.
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September 04, 2024
Investors Get 3rd Extension For £253M Bid For Payments Co.
Payments technology company Equals said Wednesday that the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers has granted its request to extend a deadline for the third time for a consortium of investors to confirm or cancel their proposed £253 million ($332 million) takeover bid.
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September 04, 2024
Mishcon Helps Starwood Capital Buy UK REIT For £674M
U.S. investment firm Starwood Capital Group said Wednesday that it will buy a British real estate investment trust for £674 million ($884 million), hoping it will perform better as a private company after facing challenges in a tough property market.
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September 04, 2024
Sackers, HSF Guide £1.3B Coats UK Pension Insurance Deal
British textiles manufacturer Coats Group PLC said Wednesday that it has offloaded its retirement savings plan liabilities to Pension Insurance Corp. in a deal worth up to £1.3 billion ($1.7 billion), steered by Sacker & Partners LLP and Herbert Smith Freehills LLP.
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September 03, 2024
Loans Investor RM Infrastructure Launches £20M Tender Offer
RM Infrastructure Income PLC on Tuesday rolled out a program to buy back up to £20 million ($26 million) of its shares, in a move to return capital to investors amid a wind-down process.
Expert Analysis
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Trustees Should Take Caution After UK Pension Tap Plan
The U.K. government's recent plan to boost technology startups by tapping into pension sector funds may risk the hard-earned savings of members, so trustees need to be mindful of the proposals in light of their fiduciary duties, say Beth Brown and Riccardo Bruno at Arc Pensions.
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Report On UK Investment Act Offers Welcome Insights
The U.K. government's recent report on the National Security and Investment Act's first full year of operation is to be applauded for disclosing more information on the act's notification system than was required, enabling a better understanding of what has taken place and what the next year may hold, say Andrea Hamilton and Ajal Notowicz at Milbank.
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Preparing For M&A Under The Foreign Subsidies Regulation
The EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation introduces requirements that companies operating in the region must consider in M&A transactions, and any foreign financial contributions received by a target should be checked during the due diligence stage, with specific provisions for commission approval if a notification requirement is triggered, say Hendrik Viaene and Stéphane Dionnet at McDermott.
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Important Generative AI Considerations In M&A
The recent surge of interest in generative artificial intelligence and its use of machine learning algorithms means there are novel concerns as well as inherent risks for those engaging in M&A activity, and acquirers should pay careful attention to a target’s scope of ownership and licensing rights, say attorneys at Davis Polk.
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Pension Trustee Case Could Lead To Fossil Fuels Divestment
While the recent Court of Appeal case McGaughey v. Universities Superannuation Scheme attempts to link fossil fuel investment by trustees to significant risk of financial detriment, it is concerning that two out of 470,000 scheme members could be permitted to bring a claim without ensuring that other members are represented, says Anna Metadjer at Kingsley Napley.
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Green Loans May Be Hungary's Path To Sustainable Financing
Fueled by a rising trend in the use of green loans, Hungary is making impressive progress in its journey toward achieving a net-zero future, although the development of social and sustainability-linked loans is still a work in progress, say Gergely Szalóki and Bálint Bodó at Schönherr.
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Tackling Global Inflation Is A Challenge For Antitrust Agencies
Recent events have put pressure on antitrust agencies to address the global cost-of-living crisis, but the relationship between competition and inflation is complex, and with competition agencies’ reluctance to act as price regulators, enforcement is unlikely to have a meaningful impact, say lawyers at Linklaters.
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What New FCA Management Will Mean For Enforcement
Therese Chambers’ first speech since becoming the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority’s joint executive director provided insightful observations about the expected behaviors of firms and their legal advisers during investigations, indicating the advent of a proactive, prosecution-minded enforcement agency trying to do the right thing, says Richard Burger at WilmerHale.
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Global M&A Outlook: Slow But Moving Along
Global merger and acquisition markets had a tough start to the year, with inflation, rising interest rates and the Ukraine conflict knocking sentiment, but in the macroeconomic, deal makers have continued to unearth pockets of activity to keep deal volumes ticking over, say lawyers at White & Case.
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Why Int'l Investors Should Keep An Eye On German M&A Regs
While German reform proposals will digitize corporate law formalities that have long been immune to change, international limitations remain, particularly for countries outside the European Union, as Germany moves to tighten regulatory hurdles to control inbound investment, say Marcus Geiss and Sonja Ruttmann at Gibson Dunn.
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CMA Review Could Help Shape UK's AI Landscape
The Competition and Markets Authority's recent review of the U.K. market for artificial intelligence foundation models is likely to feed into its recommendations concerning future legislative and regulatory changes, but may be overtaken by fast-changing developments, say lawyers at Cooley.
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Microsoft Takeover Shows The Need For EU-UK Cooperation
The differing European Commission and U.K. Competition and Markets Authority outcomes regarding Microsoft's planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard demonstrate the need for better cooperation in the post-Brexit era, but the regulators still follow a rigorous approach and ultimately convergence may prevail over divergence, say Salomé Cisnal de Ugarte and Raphaël Fleischer at King & Spalding.
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The Potential Benefits Of New EU Merger Control Rules
The core objective of a newly adopted EU Commission package is to simplify merger review procedures, which is an evolution that is more than welcome, especially in light of the very recent regulation on foreign subsidies that imposes additional burdens on M&A transactions, say lawyers at McDermott.
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Growing EU Scrutiny Increases Hurdles For Foreign Investors
The application of the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation from July will bring further oversight to many large deals, and together with bolt-on strategies, foreign investment regulation and antitrust enforcement, financial sponsors will need to start planning for compliance to avoid potential delays, say Anna Mitchell and Neil Hoolihan at Linklaters.
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How The New UK Digital Markets Bill Will Affect CMA's Powers
The highly anticipated U.K. Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill sets out far-reaching changes in terms of merger control and conduct requirements, but some are skeptical of the Competition and Markets Authority’s enhanced powers and potential for divergence in treatment between firms, say Ben Chivers, Stephen Whitfield and Nigel Seay at Travers Smith.