On 7 December, Mergermarket presented Sorainen with the “Baltic M&A Legal Adviser of the Year” award. This is already the fifth time Sorainen has received this prestigious award. Each year Mergermarket awards recognise the leading law firms and financial advisers in the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) field in Europe. Sorainen was awarded for offering innovative solutions in complex one-of-a-kind transactions in the Baltics this year.
Comments Sergej Butov, head of the Sorainen Corporate and M&A Practice Group: “Our clients trusted us with some landmark M&A transactions this year, including the three largest deals in the Baltics. This required an innovative approach and cutting-edge solutions plus exceptional collaboration among our pan-Baltic team. We are glad that the trust our clients put in our team and the result of our work is recognised on the international level.”
Among key mandates last year, Sorainen is proud to have advised:
- Nordea in combining its Baltic operations with DNB to create Luminor, the leading Baltic bank: the largest-ever merger in the Baltics and recognized as the Baltic M&A Deal of the Year 2017.
- Providence Equity Partners in acquiring the Baltic business of Swedish media holding Modern Times Group (valued at EUR 115 million).
- Palink, operator of the second largest retail chain in Lithuania, in the sale of 100% of Palink shares to Rimi Baltic (ICA Group) (total transaction value EUR 213 million).
- AMC Theatres on its acquisition of Nordic Cinema Group Holding (deal valued at EUR 893 million).
- CPA®:17 – Global, managed by affiliates of W.P. Carey Inc., in a series of acquisitions of Baltic retail property portfolios (valued at EUR 187 million).
The winners are chosen through a unique three-stage selection process that employs both empirical data and independent expert opinion to form a reasoned and substantiated selection. The judging panel, which includes senior representatives from Mergermarket, major private equity funds and international law firms, evaluates the strategic nature, complexity and innovativeness of cross-border deals every year.
