Transactions UK

June 19, 2024
GE Aerospace To Quit 3 European Stock Exchanges

General Electric Co. said Wednesday that it plans to end its listing on the London, Paris and Zurich stock exchanges following an internal review after it launched after it became a standalone company.
June 19, 2024
Investors Sell £43M Worth Of Helios Telecoms Shares

Helios Towers PLC said Wednesday that two stakeholders, private equity firm Newlight Partners LP and investment trust RIT Capital Partners PLC, have sold a total of £43.2 million ($55 million) of stock in the telecommunications company, which operates in Africa and the Middle East.
June 19, 2024
DLA Piper, Florent Steer €30M Capital Raise For Pipeline Biz

Investor HydrogenOne Capital Growth PLC said on Wednesday that hydrogen pipeline maker Strohm Holding BV, has raised €30 million ($32 million) in new funds, in a deal advised by DLA Piper and Dutch law firm Florent.
June 19, 2024
Vodafone Sells 18% Stake In Indian Cell Tower Biz For $1.8B

Vodafone Group PLC said on Wednesday that it has sold an 18% stake in Indus Towers Ltd. of India for 153 billion rupees ($1.83 billion) as the U.K. telecommunications giant looks to finance its debt repayments.
June 19, 2024
Swiss Watchdog Ends UBS-Credit Suisse Merger Controls

Switzerland's financial watchdog said Wednesday that it has cleared the takeover by UBS of stricken rival Credit Suisse AG after finding that the rescue deal would not harm competition in any domestic market.
June 19, 2024
Fieldfisher Steers £165M Mineral Biz Pension Deal

Insurance giant Aviva said on Wednesday that it has completed a full retirement savings plan buy-in worth £165 million ($210 million) sponsored by mineral miner and processor Sibelco UK Ltd., in a deal guided by Fieldfisher LLP.
June 19, 2024
Zurich Buys 70% Stake In Indian Insurer For $670M

Swiss insurance giant Zurich said Wednesday that it has bought a 70% stake in Kotak Mahindra General Insurance for $488 million, the largest foreign investment in India's general insurance market since 2021.
June 18, 2024
Microsoft Says Starbucks Ruling Hurts FTC's Activision Case

Microsoft told the Ninth Circuit on Monday that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling requiring labor regulators to meet a four-factor test in order to win a preliminary injunction undercuts the Federal Trade Commission's bid to halt the company's $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc.
June 18, 2024
Ex-Yukos Oil Investors Auction Russian Vodka TMs For €1.6M

The former shareholders of Yukos Oil Co. said Monday they have auctioned the Benelux rights to trademarks for 18 Russian vodka brands, including Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya, as they continue their effort to enforce $50 billion in arbitral awards against Russia.
June 18, 2024
Regulator Reminds Merging Firms To Put Clients First

The regulator for solicitors in England and Wales on Tuesday issued a new warning notice, reminding law firms that their clients' interests must be the top priority during legal industry mergers and acquisitions.
June 18, 2024
Hargreaves Lansdown Backs £5.4B CVC, Abu Dhabi Bid

The board of Hargreaves Lansdown PLC said Tuesday that it would be willing to recommend to its shareholders a sweetened £5.4 billion ($6.9 billion) takeover offer from a consortium of private equity companies, including CVC and the sovereign wealth fund of Abu Dhabi.
June 18, 2024
Frasers Group To Buy Back Up To £80M Worth Of Shares

Frasers Group PLC on Tuesday commenced a share repurchase program worth up to £80 million ($101 million), a move expected to lower the size of the retail giant's outstanding share capital.
June 18, 2024
STG Partners' Bid For Gresham Wins Regulatory Approvals

Gresham Technologies PLC said Tuesday that an attempt by U.S. private equity firm STG Partners LLC to buy the U.K.-based software business for £146.7 million ($186 million) has received a boost by gaining regulatory clearances.
June 18, 2024
Burges Salmon Leads London Flotation Of US Meditech Biz

AOTI Inc. said on Tuesday that it has raised £35.1 million ($45 million) on its debut on the London stock market, which the U.S. medical technology group will use to expand the company and pay back debt.
June 18, 2024
US Power-Supply Toolmaker Pulls £571M Bid For Rival

Advanced Energy Industries Inc. said on Tuesday that it will not make a £571 million ($724 million) offer for XP Power Ltd. of Singapore, after its rival power supplies maker rejected its approach.
June 17, 2024
Judge Axes Ex-Stobart CEO's Conspiracy Claim

Allowing Stobart Group's former chief executive to reargue that he was the victim of a conspiracy to remove him as chair would be "an abuse of process," a London court ruled Monday as it struck out his claim against the company and five of its directors.
June 17, 2024
Hygiene Products Biz Essity Announces $285M Buyback

Hygiene and health products maker Essity kicked off a scheme to repurchase its class B shares worth up to 3 billion Swedish kroner ($285 million) on Monday in a move expected to lower its outstanding share capital.
June 17, 2024
Investment Co. Infortar To Make €388M Offer For Shipper

AS Infortar said Monday it will bid €388 million ($415.8 million) to buy out AS Tallink, a Baltic Sea shipper, as the Estonian private investor looks to increase its stake in the company despite the northern European country's troubled economy.
June 17, 2024
Smoke Alarm Co. Gains Control Of UK Rival In £28M Deal

FireAngel said Monday that a Singapore-based home security company owned by alarm sensor specialist Siterwell Electronics Co. Ltd. has received the required shareholder backing from FireAngel shareholders for the acquisition of the U.K. maker of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
June 17, 2024
White & Case-Led Ukraine Seeks Debt Relief By Aug. Deadline

The Ukraine government, advised by White & Case LLP, appealed on Monday to bondholders to help restructure its $19.5 billion of eurobond debt before a payments freeze it agreed with international creditors expires on Aug. 1.
June 17, 2024
Hikma Pharma To Buy Rival's Injectable Biz For $135M

Hikma said on Monday it has agreed to buy units of Xellia, a Danish provider of anti-infective treatments and critical care therapies, for up to $185 million, as the U.K. pharmaceutical giant eyes growing its range of injectable drugs.
June 17, 2024
Finnish Insurer Sampo Makes $4.7B Offer For Topdanmark

Finnish insurance group Sampo PLC said Monday that it will buy the remaining shares in Topdanmark that it does not own in a deal that values the Danish insurer at $4.7 billion.
June 14, 2024
France Offers $750M For Atos' Cyber, Data Assets

Information technology firm Atos SE said Friday that it has received a nonbinding offer from the French government to buy certain big data and cybersecurity operations at an enterprise value of €700 million ($750 million).
June 14, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

This past week in London has seen toy company Jellycat hit supermarket Aldi with an intellectual property claim, AIG start proceedings against firefighting foam company Angus International Safety Group, and the Solicitors Regulation Authority file a legal claim against the Post Office amid the ongoing Horizon IT scandal. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
June 14, 2024
New Entrant Expected In Pension Transfer Market, LCP Says

Lane Clark & Peacock LLP said that another new insurer will enter the pension transfer market by the end of the year, bringing the total number of companies securing the liabilities of retirement savings plans to a record high.

Expert Analysis

How ESG Matters Are Influencing M&A Due Diligence Trends

With a proliferation of environmental, social and governance-related regulatory developments and a desire to comply with best practice, ESG matters have become an increasingly important area of focus for both clients and advisers in M&A transactions, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.
Changes To UK Competition Rules Will Extend CMA Powers

Recent amendments to U.K. competition and consumer law regimes introduce changes to merger control and antitrust investigations that will result in the speedier resolution of cases and greater autonomy for the Competition and Markets Authority, say Bill Batchelor and Aurora Luoma at Skadden.