Awards for Excellence 2019
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Rothschild & Co wins the award for best bank for advisory by virtue of the unrivalled breadth and depth of its CEE franchise.
In the 12 months to the end of March, the firm advised on more M&A transactions in the region than any of its investment banking rivals, with 16 announced transactions and a total deal volume of $5 billion, according to Dealogic.
The standout deal of the period was Sanofi’s €1.9 billion disposal of Prague-based generics arm Zentiva to Advent International, which saw Rothschild act as financial adviser to Sanofi on all issues related to the carve-out of a fully integrated business unit.
Other notable M&A mandates included advising BNP Paribas on its acquisition of Raiffeisen Bank Polska, helping Mid Europa Partners sell cable-car operator Polskie Koleje Linowe to the Polish state development fund, PFR, and acting for UFG and Gazprombank on their $225 million disposal of a 95.14% stake in OBL Pharm to Sistema and VTB.
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| William Wells |
Rothschild also turned in an extremely strong performance in independent debt advisory and restructuring during the awards period, advising on a total of 17 transactions totalling $125 billion – a 160% increase in value year on year.
Landmark deals included the $1.1 billion debt restructuring of Ukrainian agribusiness giant Mriya, which involved an enforced takeover of the firm and its assets by creditors; and a $1 billion euro-denominated dual-tranche structured loan financing for the Ukrainian finance ministry using a World Bank guarantee.
The latter transaction was part of Rothschild’s three-year assignment as financial adviser to the Ukrainian government on the definition and the execution of the country’s debt strategy.
The firm was also active on the equity side, advising Czech tech firm Avast Software and its shareholders on a £602 million IPO on the London Stock Exchange in May 2018.
Rothschild & Co’s success is based on the combination of global expertise with an extensive on-the-ground presence. Its CEE network is led by William Wells, executive vice-chairman for the region, who heads a network of specialist advisers.
The firm has offices in Athens, Istanbul and Warsaw, representatives in Budapest and Bucharest, and local partnerships in Prague, Zagreb, Sofia, Moscow, Kiev, Minsk, Vilnius, Tallinn and Riga.
