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Transactions UK
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September 10, 2024
Paul Hastings Taps Capital Markets Pro From Davis Polk
Paul Hastings LLP has hired a prominent capital markets transactions expert as a partner at its London office as it looks to boost its global practice, which it has identified as a priority.
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September 17, 2024
Cooley Hires Team For Emerging Companies And VC Practice
Cooley LLP said Tuesday that it has recruited the head of Taylor Wessing LLP's emerging companies and venture capital practice, one of three partner hires as it seeks to boost its transactional ability in London, part of a broader plan for growth in the English capital.
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September 09, 2024
Hostmore Nixes £177M TGI Fridays Takeover
British restaurant group Hostmore on Monday nixed its £177 million ($231.4 million per Monday's currency conversion) deal to buy the American-themed casual dining business TGI Fridays after the company lost control of many of its assets and revenue streams, which "potentially impairs the future revenue of the business."
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September 09, 2024
EU Should Loosen Merger Rules To Compete, Report Says
The European Union should loosen its merger rules and reform trade policy and the energy market in order to boost EU competitiveness enough to catch up with the U.S. and China, a former European Central Bank president reported Monday.
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September 09, 2024
Squarespace Gets 'Best And Final' $7.2B Offer From Permira
Squarespace Inc. said Monday that it has agreed to amend a previous take-private buyout agreement with Permira, bumping up the aggregate transaction value by $300 million to approximately $7.2 billion.
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September 09, 2024
Barratt, Lloyds Bank Form £150M JV For UK Housing
Housebuilder Barratt Developments PLC said Monday that it has formed a £150 million ($195 million) joint venture with Lloyds Banking Group and the U.K.'s housing and regeneration agency to develop thousands of houses across the country.
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September 09, 2024
Irish Cider Maker Launches 2nd €15M Buyback
C&C Group started its second €15 million ($17 million) share repurchase program on Monday, part of the Irish cider and beer maker's wider €150 million buyback plan aimed at lowering outstanding share capital and rewarding investors.
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September 09, 2024
London Software Co. Starts £19.5M Share Buyback Program
Team Internet Group PLC said Monday that it has started a share repurchasing scheme worth up to £19.5 million ($25.5 million), as the U.K. software company looks to return surplus cash to its shareholders.
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September 09, 2024
Asset Manager Alpha Seals Guernsey Insurance Biz Buyout
Alpha Growth PLC said on Monday that it has completed the purchase of 93.36% of Jeometri, an insurance management company in Guernsey, for £449,300 ($588,300) including costs, as the asset manager moves to expand its life insurance business across the U.K. and streamline its operations.
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September 09, 2024
A&O Shearman Guides OCI's $2.05B Methanol Biz Sale
Dutch hydrogen producer OCI Global said Monday that it plans to sell an 85% holding in its global methanol business to Methanex Corp., a Canadian giant, for $2.05 billion, in a move to cut its debt and return cash to shareholders.
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September 09, 2024
UK Crypto-Marketing Rules Risk Regulatory Overreach
Legal advisers for crypto-asset companies are concerned by how strenuously the financial watchdog will enforce new guidelines for promoting complex digital financial products for consumers, and have warned that overinterpreting the rules could handicap development of the market.
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September 06, 2024
EU Antitrust Chief Charts Path Forward After Illumina Setback
The European Union's top antitrust official said a recent ruling that found enforcers lacked authority to probe Illumina's $8 billion acquisition of Grail put an end to an important merger review tool and suggested legislation may be needed to plug the gap.
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September 06, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen Rockfire Capital sue its former director, Liam Kavanagh, after he was accused of cheating cash-strapped Thurrock Council out of £150 million ($197 million), FedEx launch a claim against an Israeli supply chain business, and a legal dispute between steel magnate Sanjeev Gupta and a former colleague. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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September 06, 2024
Magnate Can't Stop Sale Of Airline Shares In €50M Dispute
A company with links to aviation magnate German Efromovich on Friday failed to get an order restraining the chairman of Aeroitalia SRL from selling the assets of the budget carrier pending the determination of a €50 million ($55 million) dispute.
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September 06, 2024
EU Gears Up For New Commission With A Plea: More Women
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is gearing up to distribute the top jobs in foreign trade, economics and antitrust among the new commissioners for their five-year mandate, but she is pressing countries in the bloc to nominate more female candidates.
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September 06, 2024
CMA To Probe GXO's £762M Bid For Logistics Biz
The antitrust authority of the U.K. on Friday launched the first phase of inquiry into the U.S.-based GXO Logistics Inc.'s £762 million ($950 million) takeover of British supply-chain group Wincanton PLC.
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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.
Expert Analysis
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PR Perspectives: Getting Merger Communications Right
As the recent Allen & Overy and Shearman Sterling deal announcement demonstrates, controlling the narrative is the priority when merger discussions begin, so law firms need to consider their stakeholder base and the best communication channels for each segment, ready to adapt to the audience group's needs, say Ben Girdlestone and Bethany Durkin at Byfield.
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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.