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International Edition

Commentary: After the downfall, chastened Dubai adjusts to the times

Dubai, the gaudiest of financial centres, has lived its short existence in the glare of public life. As such, it was inevitable that the default of Dubai World would not only teach the emirate a chastening lesson but provide a singularly public restructuring. However, as Dubai World's workout looks to be reaching some sort of conclusion with the announcement last month that the state-owned conglomerate has reached a deal to restructure £16bn worth of debt, thoughts must now turn to how much damage has been sustained to its reputation and its chances of restoring former glories. In many ways, the news could have been worse. There is still plenty going for Dubai and the emirate remains the place from which many law firms are choosing to target the rest of the region. It is true that recent years have seen a greater flow of investment from law firms into other markets, but Dubai has a major head start on rival markets and is by far the largest international centre for professional services in the region.
3 minute read

International Edition

Ashurst and A&O advise on RBS sale of European factoring businesses

Ashurst and Allen & Overy (A&O) have taken roles on Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS) European disposal programme, as the bank sold its factoring businesses in both France and Germany. In France, the issue share capital of RBS Factor has been sold to financial services company GE Capital, while a similar deal completed at the end of March saw the General Electric subsidiary buy out RBS' German business, RBS Factoring.
2 minute read

International Edition

Simmons and A&O take lead on £2bn travel company refinancing

Simmons & Simmons and Allen & Overy (A&O) have taken key roles on Thomas Cook's refinancing, as the travel company attempts to bolster its balance sheet. The process, which has taken almost six months to complete, has seen the company secure financing worth almost £2bn in total.
2 minute read

International Edition

Garrigues takes top role on €4.2bn Spanish banking merger deal

Garrigues has taken the lead role on Spain's largest-ever savings bank merger, as a trio of banks join forces in a €4.2bn (£3.7bn) deal. Caixa Catalunya, Caixa Tarragona and Caixa Manresa confirmed the merger deal earlier this week (17 May) and will now trade under the name Caixa Catalunya.
2 minute read

International Edition

Freshfields leads on $1.4bn private equity financing for aviation startup

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has taken the lead role on a $1.4bn (£971m) private equity deal for aircraft leasing startup Avolon. The deal saw a consortium comprising Cinven, CVC Capital Partners and Oak Hill Capital Partners commit $750m (£521m) alongside a $615m debt package.
2 minute read

International Edition

Links, Herbert Smith plug in for roles on £3.3bn National Grid rights issue

Linklaters and Herbert Smith have taken lead roles on National Grid's £3.3bn rights issue as the energy giant gears up for a major programme of investment. The proceeds of the rights issue will allow National Grid to replace ageing assets, strengthen its infrastructure and upgrade UK networks to allow access to renewable sources of energy.
2 minute read

International Edition

Linklaters and Dewey take cross-border roles on $1.34bn zinc mining deal

Linklaters and Dewey & LeBoeuf have taken lead roles on a $1.34bn (£907m) cross-border mining deal which is set to see Indian mining group Vedanta Resources become the world's largest zinc producer. The deal sees Vedanta purchase three zinc mines from rival conglomerate Anglo American, including the Skorpion mine in Namibia, Lisheen in Ireland and a 74% stake in Black Mountain in South Africa.
2 minute read

International Edition

Hogan Lovells acts for Russian investor on basketball buyout

Hogan Lovells' London team has completed its first corporate deal since the transatlantic merger went live at the beginning of May. The newly-formed firm has advised Onexim Sports and Entertainment on its acquisition of a majority stake in US basketball team the New Jersey Nets.
2 minute read

International Edition

OFT set to keep on keeping on after collapse of BA trial

"Those responsible for conducting criminal prosecutions within the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) have in this instance been guilty of incompetence on a monumental scale." The words expressed by defence counsel Ben Emmerson QC, albeit quickly retracted, give some indication of the sentiments in the legal community in reaction to the OFT's decision to drop its much-touted criminal trial against four present and past British Airways (BA) executives last week.
3 minute read

International Edition

CC, A&O and US trio advise on Man Group's $1.6bn hedge fund buyout

Five law firms have taken major roles on Man Group's $1.6bn (£1.1bn) cash-and-stock acquisition of hedge fund GLG Partners, reports The Am Law Daily. The deal, which creates an investing behemoth with $63bn (£44bn) under management, will help Man Group to diversify its holdings and cope with the EU's new regulatory structure for hedge funds, which is set to require increased transparency from international hedge funds wanting to do business within the EU.
2 minute read

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