Clifford Chance advised private equity firm 3i Group plc on its acquisition of Hans Anders from Alpha Private Equity and Alpinvest. Hans Anders (founded in 1982) is a market leading, value-for-money optical retailer in the Benelux with a presence in Sweden and France. Hans Anders operates 253 stores in the Netherlands, 105 in Belgium, 62 in France and 36 in Sweden and achieved sales of €192m in the last fiscal year ending January 2017. 3i has agreed to invest €200m in Hans Anders. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.

3 April 2017 / PARIS – Dechert LLP advised Philippe Boulay and Upela.com, a start-up specializing in French and international e-shipping, on its acquisition by Flash Group, a European leader in express and sensitive shipping supported by Eurazeo PME.

 Delphi has advised B&B TOOLS Invest AB, a wholly-owned subsidiary of B&B TOOLS AB (publ) listed on NASDAQ Stockholm Mid Cap, in the acquisition of all shares in Arbesko-Gruppen Aktiebolag and nine (9) of its subsidiaries (“Arbesko-Gruppen”).

 Arbesko-Gruppen is a company founded in 1839, with its own research, product development and production operations for safety and work footwear for professionals. Arbesko-Gruppen have approximately 120 employees and a turnover of approximately SEK 200 million.

Shearman & Sterling advised the Board of Directors of the US-listed Chinese online recruiting portal Zhaopin Limited (NYSE: ZPIN) on its acquisition by SEEK International Investments Pty Ltd. (SEEK), the current controlling shareholder of Zhaopin, and two Chinese private equity investors, namely Hillhouse Capital Group (Hillhouse) and FountainVest Partners (FountainVest), at an implied equity value of approximately US$1 billion. The transaction is expected to close during the second half of 2017 and is subject to various closing conditions.

Jones Day is advising OGEL GmbH, the majority shareholder of Biotest AG, Germany, in connection with the decision of CREAT Group, China, to make a voluntary public takeover offer to all Biotest shareholders. Pursuant to the announcement, the transaction values Biotest at €1.3 billion enterprise value. Biotest is a global company that supplies plasma protein products and biotherapeutic drugs.

For additional information about this matter, please contact: Johannes Perlitt
Client(s): OGEL GmbH
Practice(s): M&A, Capital Markets, Life Sciences, Private Equity

Taylor Wessing has advised accesso Technology Group plc, an AIM listed technology solutions provider in the entertainment and leisure market, on its acquisition of Ingresso Group Limited, a global distribution system for entertainment ticketing, for an EBITDA based price of up to £28m.

Clifford Chance has advised South Korean asset manager Capstone Asset Management on its acquisition of the Zalando HQ in Berlin. The property is currently being developed and sold by UBM Development AG, a specialist in hotel, office and residential developments.

The transaction is structured as a forward deal and a purchase price of EUR 196 million has been agreed. The property is scheduled for completion in Q3 2018. L'Etoile Properties is acting as acquisition manager and will provide asset and property management services following completion.

Paul, Weiss is representing Cornell Capital LLC, a private investment firm, in its agreement to acquire WKI Holdings Company, Inc. (World Kitchen), a leading multinational manufacturer and marketer of housewares. Financial terms of the transaction, expected to close during the second quarter of 2017, were not disclosed.

Niederer Kraft & Frey (NKF) advised Boston Scientific Corporation, USA as Swiss counsel on the acquisition of Symetis SA for USD435 million. Headquartered in Ecublens, Switzerland, Symetis is a leading European developer of innovative, minimally invasive heart valve replacement devices. The transaction is subject to antitrust approval, and closing is anticipated for the second half of 2017.

Schellenberg Wittmer acted as counsel to AXA Life Ltd in a public tender offer for all the shares in Zürcher Freilager AG, a Zurich based real estate company with a portfolio of CHF 870 mio., followed by a squeeze-out merger. We advised on the tender offer in real estate, corporate and tax aspects.