Acquisitions Monthly articles from January 2002

Acquisitions Monthly archives from January 2002

A year to forget; in 2001 annual worldwide M&A volume tumbled by 50% to US$1.74trn, its lowest level since 1997. (Insight).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Few players in the merger game will wish to dwell upon last year; the overwhelming majority will prefer to move rapidly on to better prospects in 2002. Last year will be most notable for the tragic events of September 11 as well as job cuts on...

New Year festivities in Italy. (European deal of the month).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... The old year went out and the new one started in sparkling fashion in Italy. Booming sales of "spumante" helped; so did the bright blue skies and brilliant sunshine that made Alpine resorts more than usually appealing over Christmas and the New...

Popping corks for gas grid IPO. (Market intelligence).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... "The operation was a great success, extremely well conducted by the advisers, the banks and the company's management," said Vittorio Mincato, managing director of ENI, Italy's important oil and gas corporation. Mincato was referring to the...

Amgen to buy rival for US$16bn: pure product acquisitions between biotechs and pharmaceuticals are becoming more common -- fuelled in the US by the expected wave of patent expiries. Amgen's acquisition of Immunex last month provides the perfect example of this type of deal. (US deal of the month).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Amgen, one of the world's largest biotechnology companies has acquired its rival, Immunex, in a US$16bn deal. Having gained control of the rheumatoid arthritis drug Enbrel, Amgen will be the market leader in the inflammation arena. Under...

Food for thought in Japan; Sam Bridges reviews the prospects for M&A activity in Japan. (Asian deal of the month).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Over the past year the Japanese market has continued to look in vain for signs of recovery. But perhaps now a small glimmer of hope is arising in the form of European companies venturing into Japan in search of profitable businesses. ...

Synopses of the largest global deals in December. (Market intelligence).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... US -- Amgen (AI) definitively agreed to acquire all the outstanding common stock of Immunex (IC), a manufacturer of immunological therapeutic products, in a stock-swap transaction valued at US$16.9bn. AI offered US$4.50 in cash and 0.44 common...

Predictions for the year ahead. (Viewpoints).
January 1, 2002... Well rehearsed "The market environment is hard to predict as the economies slow in Europe and we find ourselves in the middle of a synchronised global slowdown. All the well-rehearsed factors of lack of pricing power, lack of visibility on...

Goldmans tops M&A league tables; despite all the problems of 2001, there are reassuring signs of continuity in the league tables. (Review of the year).
January 1, 2002... A mid all the turbulence of 2001 and the uncertainties still facing the market, it is worth pointing out that there was also an ample measure of continuity last year. Both Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley had their moments of apprehension, but...

European market struggles to impress; European M&A activity in 2001 struggled to live up to the unprecedented levels seen in 200. Natasha Berg highlights where the channels of activity in Europe's key markets are headed in 2002. (Review of the year).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Activity in Europe's principal M&A markets saw huge dips in both value and volume of deals during 2001, as the UK, France and Germany experienced a slump in confidence following a further decline in demand for telecommunications technologies...

UK returns to lead European M&A; after months of shaky confidence in the UK M&A market most players look forward to a more prosperous 2002. (Review of the year).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Schroder Salomon Smith Barney (SSSB) took the top slot in the 2001 UK advisory league table for completed deals last year, knocking Goldman Sachs off its perch. The previous year SSSB took sixth place. A significant US$20bn behind SSSB came...

Glory days of emerging markets gone; it will take some time for this troubled asset class to recover. Volumes in all three main arenas were sharply down last year, and experts predict only mild recovery this year. (Review of the year).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... For Latin America, the problem is resurgent political uncertainty; in emerging Europe, the end of large-scale privatisation is held responsible. The picture in Asia is less bleak, although activity there is likely to concentrate on mainland...

Reforming EU merger control; the European Commission's green paper proposes a number of significant reforms to the EU's merger control regime, which no dealmaker or merger lawyer should overlook. (Legal & Regulatory).
January 1, 2002... Some of these proposals, particularly the extension of EU jurisdiction over multiple filings and the `stop the clock' proposal, giving firms more time to offer commitments necessary to get the deal through, are welcome. However, some of the...

Battle for P&O sails into choppy waters; carnival wants P&O Princess to delay an EGM on the Royal Caribbean merger until after regulators have ruled on its offer for P&O. P&O princess is insisting on sticking to the timetable. (Legal & Regulatory).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A merger between P&O Princess and Royal Caribbean is on the agenda for discussion at Royal Caribbean's next EGM. The meeting is scheduled for February 14 2002, despite attempts by Carnival to delay the discussion until after the rulings by...

Gas deregulation triggers consolidation; the deregulation of the energy market in Europe is one of the hottest themes that the European Union is currently dealing with and should lead to long-term structural changes in the sector. (Legal & Regulatory).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... When the EU Directive on the gas market was opted by the European Parliament on June 22 1998, with the aim of ensuring nondiscriminatory access to the pan-European gas supply chain, it raised expectations for a quick liberalisation of the...

2002 tipped as hot year for TMT; December proved to be a surprisingly busy month for the TMT sector, giving hope that more deals could be on their way in 2002. (TMT sector report).(technology, media, telecommunications)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... The roller-coaster ride of the TMT sector for M&A continued its downward journey into 2001, as activity in the sector saw huge dips in both the value and volume of deals. The regulatory environment had a particular impact on declining M&A...

Financial sector shows promise; although 2001 has seen a sharp drop in activity in the M&A industry, there has still been no shortage of excitement in the FIG sector over the year. (FIG sector report).
January 1, 2002... In the US market the two largest deals of the year -- AIG's acquisition of American General Corp and First Union's buyout of North Carolina-based Wachovia Corp -- were also the most problematic. Both deals were eventually completed. despite the...

Utilities to power on in 2002; last year saw more big upheavals among European utilities as the world's largest economic block continued its struggle towards the goal of a single market for gas and electricity. (Utility sector report).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... M&A activity embraced multibillion cross-border deals within Europe, more expansion into the US market, the collapse a proposed mega-deal, and accelerating rationalisation/ consolidation in national markets. Given that the holy grail of fully...

Is real estate hot property? The property sector had an impressively busy year for M&A activity in 2001, while other sectors suffered from the recession. (Property sector report).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Several big deals that came in towards the end of the year significantly pushed up the overall performance of the sector in 2001. Property M&A can be broken down into two main categories: investment in property companies and investment in...

Monthly sector analysis.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... THIS SECTOR ANALYSIS INCLUDES ACQUISITIONS AND BUYOUTS ANNOUNCED BETWEEN 29 NOVEMBER AND 31 DECEMBER. UK PUBLIC OFFERS COMPLETED BETWEEN THESE DATES ARE INCLUDED, WHEREAS NEW AND PENDING OFFERS ARE EXCLUDED. THE TRANSACTIONS ARE CLASSIFIED...

Moving in the mid-markets (US$500m-US$50m). (Overview).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Overview The mid-markets ended December on a high note. The average deal size was up more than 35% from November, with the average deal size for the top 15 deals standing at US$404.8m, up from an average of US$260.7m in November. ...

Cephalon snaps up Lafon; ending a busy year for the pharmaceutical industry in all deal value brackets, American biopharmaceutical company Cephalon has agreed to acquire French, family-owned, Laboratoire Lafon. (Deal of the month).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The US$450m acquisition of Laboratoire Lafon enables Cephalon to control worldwide rights to its flagship product, Provigil (modafinil), a treatment for narcolepsy. The deal, one of the largest French pharmaceutical deals this year, also...

South African government sells stake in M-Cell. (Moving in the mid-markets).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The South African government has sold its 20% stake in M-Cell to Ice Finance of the Netherlands for R5.7bn (US$475m). The government held the 20% stake through its transportation company, Transnet. M-Cell Ltd is the holding company of South...

Lehmans acquires Telecom Italia satellites; Lehman Brothers Merchant Banking, the private equity subsidiary of the eponymous investment bank, has acquired a majority stake in the satellite communication interests of Telecom Italia, in a transaction worth 550m [euro]. (Moving in the mid-markets).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The deal, which is structured with a newco, will give funds managed by Lehman Brothers a 55% interest in the combined businesses. The balance of the equity will be shared between a consortium of Italian banks comprising IntesaBci, Interbanca...

Oil and gas report: Aker Maritime merges with Kvaerner. (Moving in the mid-markets).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Strong consolidation activity in the oil and gas sector has recently resulted in the creation of big companies and in substantial changes in the industry's structure. While big oil companies are now looking outside their traditional operating...

Brambles divests US equipment rental business. (Moving in the mid-markets).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Brambles Industries is keen to shed some pounds following the festive season. The support services company has sold its North American equipment rental business, Brambles Equipment Services, for US$122m to US listed National Equipment Services....

Speedy Hire to acquire Jewson's tool hire depots. (Moving in the mid-markets).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... UK equipment leasing company Speedy Hire is planning to acquire the stand-alone tool and equipment hire depots of Jewson for 13.5m [pounds sterling] (US$29.6m) in cash from French parent company Saint-Gobain. Under the terms of the...

Behind the buyouts. (Overview).(UK buyouts in 2001)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
January 1, 2002... The vibrant UK buyout sector was left with a bitter taste in its mouth last year. For the first time since 1993, the total value of UK buyouts showed a year-on-year drop. Figures released by the Centre for Management Buyout Research show that...

Lack of mega-deals hits figures; for the first time since 1993, the total value of UK buyouts has shown a year-on-year drop. (Private equity column).(Statistical Data Included)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Figures released by the Centre for Management Buyout Research, just two weeks before year-end, show that the value of the market has slumped by a massive 6bn [pounds sterling] (US$8.7bn). Given the current level of global economic uncertainty,...

Cinven launches third European fund. (Behind the buyouts).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Cinven of the UK has launched its biggest buyout fund to date. The private equity group has announced the launch of the Third Cinven Fund, totalling in excess of E3.2bn. The fund exceeds the original target size, with further closings expected...

Kemira acquires US Vinings. (Exit news).(Vinings Industries sell Finnish operations)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Kemira acquires US Vinings Finnish chemicals group Kemira has bought North American Vinings Industries for US$138m. The deal provides an exit for JP Morgan & Partners, the venture capital arm of JP Morgan Chase. "The outcome of this...

Bridgepoint triples return. (Exit news).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Bridgepoint has tripled its money on the sale of its interest in Birmingham Airport. The sale represented the 13th realisation made by Bridgepoint in 2001. The private equity firm has received 84m [pounds sterling] from Macquarie Airports...

CBPE exit. (Exit news).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Close Brothers Private Equity (CBPE) has sold its investment in Amber Doors to Swedish manufacturing group Cardo for SKr220m (US$21.4m). Amber, which has a turnover of approximately SKr240m and employs about 260 people, is one of the UK's...

ABB sells climate technology to GAM; Swiss-based global engineering firm ABB has entered an agreement with private equity firm Compass Partners European Equity Fund to sell its air conditioning division, in a deal worth US$225m. (Buyout of the month).(Global Air Management)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Europe's biggest industrial engineering firm, Swedish-Swiss group ABB is to sell its ventilation and air conditioning activities to Luxembourg investment company Global Air Movement (GAM), for SFr 373,134m (US$225m). GAM is a Compass-owned...

Busy December for UK buyouts; the UK had a busy month for buyouts, with sector activity ranging from entertainment to learning. (Behind the buyouts).
January 1, 2002... A management-led investor group backed by Close Brothers Private Equity, with senior debt provided by Barclays and NM Rothschild, has acquired Gradus Group from Headlam Group. The deal is valued at US$46.38m, with CBPE investing US$15.8m. ...

Pavoncelli to head Italian investment banking. (Investment banking).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Riccardo Pavoncelli, the head of European media investment banking at Morgan Stanley, has been made head of Italian investment banking. He will remain head of European media based in London but will be spending more time in Italy. A...

Llewellyn-Lloyd quits after five years. (Investment banking).(John Llewellyn-Lloyd)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... John Llewellyn-Lloyd, chief executive of Close Brothers Corporate Finance, has stepped down after five years in charge. In that time Close became widely acknowledged as one of the leading players in the UK middle market and had made some...

National Bank of Greece appoints investment banking head. (Investment banking).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... National Bank of Greece (NBG) has made Constantinos Kyriakopoulos head of its newly-merged investment banking division. Kyriakopoulos was previously an executive director and general manager at Alpha Bank, which has since been acquired by NBG....

SG builds media and telecoms. (Investment banking).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... SG has underlined its determination to develop a media and telecoms franchise by hiring another managing director for its new industry group. Tim Murray has joined the 11-strong London-based media and telecoms team, which is led by John...

Insinger makes Chalk M&A head. (Investment banking).(Insinger de Beaufort; Clive Chalk; mergers and acquisitions)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Insinger de Beaufort has made Clive Chalk head of its London-based M&A division. Chalk, 55, joined the Benelux-based Insinger along with his colleagues at English Trust Company in May 2001 when the Benelux banking group acquired the...

Carlyle brings in Fisher. (Private equity and buyouts).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... US private equity firm Carlyle Group has hired Andrew Fisher, chief executive of private bank Coutts, to help build its European business. His exact role has yet to be defined. The move is part of a reorganisation in Europe. John Major, the...

Structured finance expands at BoS. (Private equity and buyouts).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Bank of Scotland Corporate Banking, part of UK bank HBOS, has recruited six new professionals for its London-based structured finance team, which provides acquisition finance. They include Toby Walter, who joins as a director of structured...

Awaiting corporate restructuring: there is stiff competition for a relatively small number of restructuring mandates as the recession has failed to bite. (Restructuring).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Restructuring mandates in Europe are being eagerly hunted by investment banks and other advisers starved of their usual M&A rations. Yet, while downturns always give rise to restructuring work, competition among advisers is all the more stiff...

Germany provides false prophet warning; reforms to tax and the takeover code will not be enough to propel the German M&A market into the spotlight as bankers play down fee bonanza. (Germany survey.
January 1, 2002... Good news is at a premium in the investment banking business, so much hope has been pinned on Germany as the saviour of European M&A. The removal of capital gains tax will, the argument runs, remove the last obstacle to an unprecedented...

Gradual increase in M&A activity from tax reform. (Germany survey).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Following the abolition of the 58% corporate tax on capital gains, German companies are expected to dispose of subsidiaries no longer regarded as part of their core business. Paola Subacchi writes. Following the abolition from January 1...

Evolution of German private equity; for the last 10 years and more, the focus of press speculation and industry comment at year-end has been the impending explosion of the German private equity market. (Germany survey).
January 1, 2002... Everyone is familiar with the story -- there is vast untapped potential among German mid-market (Mittelstand) companies, which are facing succession problems and the threat of external competition. In 2002, changes to the rules governing...

A cultural change in Germany; with 2002 hailing new tax reforms and borrowing legislation in Germany, will we at last see the much awaited explosion of activity in the Mittelstand? (Germany survey).
January 1, 2002... The explosion of activity in the Mittelstand has, of course, been a much debated topic. However, initial optimism and expectation has finally ground to a halt. Most players now agree that there is not going to be an explosion, despite the much...

India sustains steady performance; the slowdown seen in India in the first half of 2001 continued into the second half, with total deal values for the 12 months, at RS302BN (US$6.3BN) some 30% below those of 2000, from approximately half the number of deals. (India survey).
January 1, 2002... The striking feature of the second half was the virtual closing down of the private equity deal market, which saw less than Rs1bn of transactions in the second half, resulting in as much private equity activity as seen in 1999 but close to five...

Acquisitions in Europe.
January 1, 2002... BENELUX Target Bidder RTL Group LUXEMBOURG 22% Bertelsmann GERMANY - OWN AND OPERATIVE TV BROADCASTING - PUBLISH NEWSPAPERS STATIONS Sales ($): 2,687.30m Net Profits Sales ($):...

Domestic North American acquisitions.
January 1, 2002... Target Bidder Alpha Industries UNITED STATES Conexant Systems UNITED STATES - MANUFACTURE INTEGRATED CIRCUITS - MANUFACTURE WIRELESS ...

Acquisitions in the rest of the world.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Target Bidder Cerveceria Hondurena South Africa Breweries HONDURAS 97% UNITED KINGDOM - PRODUCE, WHL BEER, MALT LIQUOR - PRODUCE MALT BEVERAGES...

Minority stakes.
January 1, 2002... This section lists international acquisitions of minority stakes in companies with value of US$50m or more, possibly with a view to obtaining control. Situations concerned with acquisition of significant stakes are sometimes addressed by...

Country codes.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... AA ALBANIA AB ARUBA AD ANDORRA AF AFGHANISTAN AI ABU DHABI AJ AJMAN AL ALGERIA AM ARMENIA AN ANGOLA AQ ANTIGUA AR ARGENTINA AS AUSTRIA AU AUSTRALIA AZ AZERBAIJAN...

Table criteria.
January 1, 2002... (Table criteria -- January 2002) PAGE NO TITLE TABLE CRITERIA p46 TECHNOLOGY HIGHTECH DEALS ANNOUNCED Date Announced: 23/11/01 to DECEMBER 2001, EUROPEAN 31/12/01; Deal Type:...