Linklaters

Whilst there has been a significant global decline in mega buyouts and fundraising and an increase in restructurings, a changed economic environment will provide opportunities for a revival in M&A activity, whether because of forced exits, “bolt ons” to portfolio companies, sellers price expectations dropping or otherwise.

In the short term, private equity houses that bought highly leveraged companies between 2005 and 2007, particularly in key sectors like retail and luxury goods, could see their loans recalled and private equity houses will need to refinance and restructure debt and their investments, focusing on maximising value within each portfolio. In addition, private equity funding with unspent funds will see opportunistic buys in the market place.

Private equity houses, investors, funds, banks and financial institutions rely on Linklaters’ market leading global experts. Linklaters’ private equity lawyers advise clients at all stages, from establishing the fund and making investments, to ongoing portfolio assistance including restructuring advice, to exiting from those investments.

Clients benefit from market-leading funds, corporate M&A, and restructuring, finance experts and their understanding of both the fund-raising, fund structuring, buyout and restructuring market. Linklaters helps clients structure the best investment methods for them, from helping sponsors position themselves to ensure they are the lead equity sponsor when looking at M&A situations to clubbing together to compete for distressed assets. With pressure for more scrutiny and transparency, clients will especially value Linklaters' experience of working with industry bodies like the BVCA, EVCA and Brussels Task Force (set up in response to EU proposals to regulate private equity) who are shaping the private equity landscape across Europe. 

Many clients come to Linklaters to do pan-European deals, and the firm’s private equity team has deep-rooted experience in each jurisdiction. In the wake of the credit crunch, the firm’s superb local restructuring & insolvency teams are relevant to private equity clients, for whom Linklaters restructures corporate debt for the lenders and management across Europe and the UK.

Contact us

To discuss legal issues with Linklaters’ private equity sector team, please contact leaders Ian Bagshaw, Richard Youle or Charles Jacobs, Fabrice de La Morandière, Ulrich Wolff, Krister Hansen or Chris Kelly. For industry body developments, please contact Elizabeth Ward (member of the BVCA Legal & Technical Committee and Brussels Task Force working group).

You can find out more about Linklaters’ private equity capabilities from sector manager Sarah Ebdon on (44 20) 7456 4281.

Recent private equity transactions include advising:

• Oaktree on the acquisition of Countrywide via a debt restructuring
• the debtor and sponsor on the restructuring of Italian luxury yacht manufacturer Ferretti
• the consortium led by Montagu Private Equity and Global Infrastructure Partners on £1.7bn Public to Private of Biffa Plc - one of the largest UK P2P 
• Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity on its €800m secondary buy out of Euromedic International Holdings from Warburg Pincus ­the largest CEE buyout of the year, and winner of Emerging Europe Deal of the Year at the European Private Equity Awards, 2008
• CapVest on the sale €1.8bn sale of FoodVest - the European Large Private Equity Deal of the Year (Real Deals)
• TPG Capital on the £124m strategic investment into Bradford & Bingley - one of the most high profile private equity-backed PIPE transactions