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Corporate and M&A

We advise clients on domestic and cross-border public and private transactions as well as on governance and regulatory issues. We use our market knowledge to anticipate clients' needs and help them achieve their aims with a bespoke service that is client-focused and delivers on our commitment to excellence.

  • From large ground-breaking to mid-market transactions, we cover a wide spectrum in terms of both complexity and size without compromising on the quality of our service.
  • We have a proven ability to handle the most complex and demanding equity capital markets work for our clients. Acting for a mixture of issuers, sponsors and shareholders means that we understand corporate transactions from every angle.
  • Our partners counsel boards and senior executives in relation to the full range of corporate governance and regulatory compliance issues. Our advice is delivered with an understanding of the commercial objectives of the business and an understanding of the sector and environment in which it is operating.

Expertise:

Recent work

Smith & Williamson

Advising Smith & Williamson on its £1.8bn merger with Tilney Group.

Hovis

Advising Hovis on the sale of the Fleming Howden and Holgran businesses to Associated British Foods.

WEPA

Advising German manufacturing group WEPA on its acquisition of the 50 per cent joint venture stake in UK paper supplier Northwood & WEPA.

Altria Group, Inc.

Advising Altria Group, Inc., the largest shareholder in beer and soft drinks producer SABMiller, on the £79bn offer from rival brewer AB Inbev and Altria’s investment in the enlarged group.

Verizon Communications Inc.

Advising Verizon Communications Inc. on its acquisition of Vodafone’s 45 per cent interest in Verizon Wireless for $130bn. The transaction was implemented by way of a public scheme of arrangement. We also acted for Verizon on the acquisition of Fleetmatics for $2.4bn and the subsequent integration of Fleetmatics within the Verizon group structure.

Kennedy Wilson Holdings

Advising Kennedy Wilson Holdings on its £1.5bn public offer for the shares in Kennedy Wilson Europe that it did not own to create a $4bn combined entity.

Visa Inc.

Advising Visa Inc. on its acquisition of Visa Europe Limited for a total value of €18.25bn.

Supermarket Income REIT plc

Advising Supermarket Income REIT plc, a United Kingdom-based, closed-ended investment company, on its IPO on the specialist fund segment of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, with an initial market capitalisation of £100m.

Improbable

Advising Improbable, a UK-based virtual simulation start-up, on the raising of $502m in its latest financing round led by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp., with other previous investors also participating. This is the largest ever Series B investment in Europe and the biggest venture financing round by a private British company in history.

GAME Digital plc

Advising GAME Digital plc, the leading omni-channel specialist retailer of video games in the UK and Spain, on its IPO on the premium segment of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, with an initial market capitalisation of £340m.

Greenergy

Advising Greenergy, a leading British fuel supplier, on a major investment by Brookfield Business Partners, part of Canadian alternative asset management group Brookfield.

See all

Contact

See all contacts

Howard Corney

 Partner
+44 (0)20 7849 2373 Email Howard

Luke Powell

 Partner
+44 (0)20 7849 2658 Email Luke

What we think

Corporate Law Update

Robert Boyle, Dominic Sedghi 11 Oct 2019
In this week’s update: an FCA reminder about Brexit related changes, ESMA is seeking views on possible changes to MAR and ISS is consulting on changes to its AGM voting policy.
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Corporate Law Update

Dominic Sedghi, Robert Boyle 04 Oct 2019
In this week’s update: an automatic email footer can be a valid electronic signature, the IA’s red-topping policy on pensions and diversity and guidance on risk factors in prospectuses.
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Corporate Law Update

Robert Boyle, Dominic Sedghi 27 Sep 2019
In this week's update: clarification of a chairman's power to adjourn a meeting where there is uncertainty about an attendees entitlement to vote and an unfair prejudice petition...
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What people are saying

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"Excellent firm providing commercial, pragmatic advice - sensitive to client needs and bandwidth availability during peak times of a transaction."

IFLR1000 2018

"Leading mid-market practice advising high-profile names on a range of transactions including acquisitions, disposals and joint ventures. Well versed in high-end work, often acting on international mandates for corporates and financial institutions."

Chambers UK 2018

"Clients hail the 'excellent depth of talent and focus on maintaining a strong relationship'."

Chambers UK 2018

"The 'very responsible, pragmatic and extremely creative' team at Macfarlanes LLP handles public and private M&A across a wide range of sectors."

The UK Legal 500 2017

"They have a good level of flexibility and are capable of understanding the business reasons behind our needs. They try to understand the business rationale. They alert us about issues, about balancing risks and opportunities."

Chambers UK 2017

"Highly regarded corporate group representing a string of household names. Adeptly handles both mid-market and high-end deals on behalf of UK and overseas clients."

Chambers Global 2016

Awards