Healthy appetite for transaction activity as legal firm advises on £500m worth of deals

The corporate team of International law firm Addleshaw Goddard in Scotland has advised on more than £500million worth of transactions in 2018 so far, a total it says demonstrates a healthy appetite for activity from both domestic and international buyers.

From January – May, the team advised on over 10 deals across sectors including real estate, manufacturing, energy and technology.

In the first half of May alone, the firm completed three deals; acting on behalf of the shareholders of QTS Group Ltd which was acquired by AIM-listed Renew Holdings in a deal worth £80m; advising on the sale of E-learning platform ICS Learn to its management team (backed by private equity); and advising on the sale of Dawn Homes to AIM-listed Springfield Properties for £21m.

Other key transactions since January include the £50m sale of Aberdeen-based subsea engineering firm, Ecosse Subsea, to Houston-based Oceaneering International and acting for Cairngorm Capital on its acquisition of NYT Holdings both in February and in the manufacturing sector, Dutch-based Belu B. V’s acquisition by Quin Global UK, a Scottish-based supplier of adhesive products.

Addleshaw Goddard also advised on a number of additional transactions in the real estate and related services sectors including; acting on behalf of Housing Growth Partnership on funding arrangements with Go Homes, Briar Homes and Cruden Homes.

In the tech sector, Glasgow-based satellite firm Clyde Space was acquired by Swedish space tech company AAC Microtec, with Addleshaw Goddard advising one of the key investor shareholders. The firm also played a key role in advising digital entertainment company, Blazing Griffin, in its latest round of investment. In addition, Addleshaw Goddard acted for YFM Private Equity in relation to its investment into Hutchinson Networks Limited, a leading provider of multi-vendor IT and network solutions.

David Kirchin, partner and head of corporate for Addleshaw Goddard in Scotland, said: “Despite a continuing uncertain political background, the market is positive, as reflected by the value and number of deals coming through the pipeline. We’re seeing a healthy mixture of private equity and corporate transactions from UK and international investors, and the range of sectors experiencing activity underpins the diversity of the companies operating in the Scottish economy and the international recognition of their strengths.

“Our own pipeline remains strong and we expect a number of further deals to complete in coming months. Productivity remains top of the agenda for many businesses, and expanding through transactional activity continues to play a key role in enabling companies to grow portfolios – obtaining quality talent and business intelligence along the way.”