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A raft of top firms including Freshfields Bruckhaus, Deringer, Kirkland & Ellis, DLA Piper and Ashurst are advising on the  £4.5 billion buy-out of veterinary pharmaceutical group Dechra by a consortium headed up by Scandinavian private equity giants EQT.

The deal, which people involved in the deal said was one of the largest take-private deals of the year so far, sees Freya Bidco, a newly formed company owned by EQT and Abu Dhabi investors’ Luxinva, acquire the U.K. based group veterinary pharmaceutical for 3,875 pence a share.

The Dechra Group, a U.K.-based global developer, manufacturer and supplier of products to service the veterinary profession worldwide, was first formed in 1996 and has been listed on a ‘premium segment’ of the London Stock Exchange since 2000.

Kirkland & Ellis advised EQT and the consortium on the transaction, with London-based corporate partners Roger Johnson, Dipak Bhundia, Francesca Harris and Adrian Duncan heading up the team, according to a spokesperson for the firm.

This is the second major deal for Kirkland this week, after it announced on Tuesday it had advised the Asda Group on its tie-up with EG Petrol.

Freshfields advised the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, who under the investing entity Luxinva, acquired a 26 percent of the business, according to the sale prospectus.

The firm offered up a senior cross-border team headed up by Middle-East and North Africa regional head Michael Hilton in Abu Dhabi, London-based corporate partner Stephen Hewes and Brussels-based antitrust partner Rafique Bachour, who is also one of the firm’s global managing partners.

DLA Piper advised long-term clients Dechra with corporate partners Charles Cook and Jon Earle leading on the deal. DLA’s head of competition, Sarah Smith advised on the anti-trust matters of the deal and employment partner Nick Hipwell advised on incentives.

Commenting on the transaction, Cook, the relationship partner for Dechra, said: “We are delighted to be representing Dechra on this important transaction, continuing a long standing relationship that started with advised on their IPO in 2000.”

Ashurst is advising joint financial advisors to EQT, Luxinva and Freya Bidco, Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch. The Ashurst team is headed up by the firm’s global chair Karen Davies, as well as banking partner Tim Rennie and corporate partner Harry Thimont, according to a statement from the firm.

The lucrative take-private comes at a time when the London Stock Exchange has been struggling to remain competitive. Last year, a raft of top firms advised as  listed financial news and information business Euromoney was taken private in a £1.6 billion takeover by Astorg.