A host of firms including national trio Hammonds, DLA Piper and Addleshaw Goddard have secured roles advising on the £162m buyout of software company SSP.

Hammonds advised the management of SSP on the acquisition by H&F Bidco – an investment vehicle owned by funds managed by San Francisco private equity group Hellman & Friedman. The firm fielded a team headed by private equity partner Gregg Davison for the group's management, led by executive chairman David Rasche.

Hammonds has previously advised SSP on deals including its 2006 float on London's Alternative Investment Market, and last year's £43m takeover of Sirius Financial Solutions.

Davison said: "We advised SSP when it was bought out six years ago and then we took it public. Now we are advising on it going private again so, from the firm's point of view, it has done a full circle."

Addleshaws corporate partner Garry Elliott advised SSP's independent directors while Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer advised Hellman & Friedman, with the firm's co-head of international private equity, Chris Bown, leading.

DLA Piper advised Barclays Bank, Lloyds TSB, HSBC and the Royal Bank of Scotland, that provided £80m of debt funding for the deal that was announced last week (23 July) and is set to close in September.

DLA Piper finance and projects partner Peter Crichton led the team advising the banks, assisted by associates Ali Akbar, Daniel Samson and Andrew Papworth.