Recent Transactions

Advised and provided a fairness opinion to the Special Committee of the Independent Directors of OTF II, a specialty finance company focused on originating and making loans to, and making debt and equity investment in, technology related companies, specifically software, based primarily in the US, on its merger with OTF 

Advised RadiusDC, a national owner and operator of highly-connected, urban-located data centers, on the acquistion of a series of entities comprising the U.S. operations of NextStream, a data center operator in Latin America owned by Actis

Adviser to Bendigo and Adelaide Bank on the exit of its investment in the Homesafe Equity Release Joint Venture

Advising Australian Unity Property Limited, as the responsible entity of the Australian Unity Diversified Property Fund, on Australian Unity Diversified Property Fund’s merger with Cromwell Direct Property Fund

Advising Parthenon Capital, a financial services & technology focused private equity firm, on its acquisition of Global Payment’s Gaming Services Division, a leading provider of on-site and digital payment processing services to companies in the gaming industry, for $415mm

Advising Dama Financial, the nation’s largest provider of access to banking and payment solutions for the cannabis industry, on its acquisition of GrowFlow Corp, a leading business management and compliance software platform for cannabis retailers, cultivators, processors, and distributors

Advised Aquiline Capital Partners on its acquisition of Quicken, the best-selling personal finance software in the U.S., from H.I.G. Capital

Advised Australian Unity Funds Management on its successful defence of Australian Unity Healthcare Property Trust, in response to four unsolicited offers from a consortium comprised of NorthWest Healthcare Properties REIT and Singaporean sovereign wealth fund, GIC

Advised Avant Mutual, an Australian member-owned organization providing medical indemnity insurance products to healthcare practitioners, on the exit of its strategic stake in NobleOak Life via IPO

Advised Australian Unity Funds Management on a A$320m equity raising and A$80m cash liquidity offer for Australian Unity Healthcare Property Trust

Advised ASX-listed real estate investment trust Dexus and its unlisted diversified property fund, Dexus Wholesale Property Fund, on Dexus Wholesale Property Fund’s merger with AMP Capital Diversified Property Fund

Advised KingSett Capital, a leading Canadian real estate private equity investor, on the sale of its portfolio company, VersaCold Logistics Services, Canada's leading cold storage warehouse owner/operator

Advising HUB24 Limited (ASX: HUB), a leading specialist investment platform provider, on its proposed acquisition of up to 40% in Easton Investments Limited (ASX: EAS), a leading provider of wealth and accounting solutions. The transaction also included the divestment of HUB24’s subsidiary, Paragem, to Easton

Advised Sir Roger De Haan on his cornerstone investment of £100mm in Saga, the UK provider of products and services exclusively for the over 50s, as part of its £150m equity raise

Advised Australian Unity, an Australian healthcare, financial services and retirement and living services company, on the formation of a strategic 50:50 joint venture with Keppel for investment opportunities in the Australian metropolitan office property sector

Advised CME Group, Inc., the operator of a leading global derivatives marketplace, on the structured sale of its 25% equity stake in Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Berhad to Bursa Malaysia Berhad

Advised the shareholders of Ourinvest DTVM, a leading Brazilian securities broker focused on providing high net-worth individuals custody, distribution and trading services, on the sale of an 80% stake to BTG Pactual, one of Brazil’s largest independent investment banking firms

Advising IFC and Principia Capital Partners on the sale of their stakes in Pravaler, Brazil’s leading provider of student loans for college students, to Itaú Unibanco, Brazil’s largest financial institution

Advised Dexus in relation to its acquisition of the 80 Collins precinct from QIC Global Real Estate

Advised Westpac, the third largest company in Australia by market capitalization, on its exit of BT Advice and the sale of select assets to Viridian Advisory

Advised ASX-listed AUB Group, a leading insurance intermediary business operating a network of over 100 insurance brokers and underwriting agencies across Australia and New Zealand, on its fully underwritten entitlement offer to raise A$116mm

Advised Grupo Monge, a leading Latin American retailer and consumer finance company, in the establishment of a long-term funding relationship with impact investment manager BlueOrchard

Advised Walmart Inc. on its new, long term credit card program agreement with Capital One Financial Corporation

Advised Julius Bär Group Ltd., a leading Swiss private banking group, on its 95% acquisition of Reliance Group, one of the largest independent Brazilian wealth management firms with client assets of approximately BRL 17 billion (USD 5.3 billion)

Advised Ladbrokes Coral Group PLC, a leading multi-channel sports betting and gaming company, on a recommended offer from GVC Holdings PLC, a multi-national online sports betting and gaming company

Advised Experian plc, the world’s leading global information services company, in connection with the acquisition of a 25% stake in L&C, the UK’s largest fee free mortgage adviser

Advised selected Second Lien Noteholders, including Canyon Capital Advisors, Mason Capital, Paulson & Co. and Soros Fund Management regarding Caesars Entertainment Operating Company’s Chapter 11 proceedings

Advised Equiniti Group plc, a UK based specialist technology outsourcer providing non-discretionary payment and administration services, on the acquisition of Wells Fargo's Shareowner Services business, and acted as joint sponsor to Equiniti's associated £122 million rights issue

Advised the Special Committee of Brookfield Canada Office Properties, Canada’s pre-eminent office real estate investment trust, on its go private transaction with Brookfield Property Partners L.P.

Advised First Republic Bank, a provider of private banking, private business banking and private wealth management services, on the acquisition of Gradifi, a Boston-based technology and service platform used by employers to make direct contributions to employees’ student loans

Advised Whistler Blackcomb Holdings Inc., a 75% owner and operator of the largest and most visited mountain resort in North America, on its sale to Vail Resorts, Inc.

Advised Minneapolis-based US Bancorp, the fifth largest commercial bank in the United States, and the parent company of Elavon, Inc., in the sale of its 50.1 percent majority stake in São Paulo-based, Elavon do Brasil to Stone Pagamentos, a local market, privately-held merchant acquirer.

Advised the National Bank of Greece SA, the leading bank in Greece by deposits and total assets, on the disposal of 100% of its interests in eleven funds managed by NBGI Private Equity. The management responsibility of the funds and underlying investments will continue to be performed by the current management team along with other persons appointed by the buyers, under a new management vehicle created expressly for this purpose

Advised International Medical Group, Inc., a leader in the global insurance and assistance services market, on its sale to ABRY Partners

Provided Fairness Opinion to the Transaction Committee of the Board of Directors of New Senior Investment Group, a $2.5 billion publicly traded REIT, on its acquisition of a 28-property portfolio from Holiday Retirement, one of the largest private operators of senior housing in the US

Advised The Toronto-Dominion Bank Group on its acquisition of Nordstrom, Inc.’s credit card assets

Advised the Special Committee of GFI Group Inc. on its sale to BGC Partners, Inc.

Advised the Independent Committee of the Board of Directors of Voya Financial, Inc. in connection with Voya Financial, Inc.’s repurchase of 7.7mm shares (aggregate repurchase of $300mm) from ING Groep N.V.

Advised LSEG on the proposed acquisition of Frank Russell Company, the number one provider of benchmarks to US-focused equity funds and a leading provider of multi-asset class investment solutions, from Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, including acting as Joint Sponsor to LSEG on its $1.6 billion rights issue

Advised MGM Resorts International on the formation of a joint venture hotel management company with the Hakkasan Group called MGM Hakkasan Hospitality that will design, develop and manage luxury non-gaming hotels worldwide

Advised Dillard’s, Inc. on a strategic alliance relating to its credit card business with Wells Fargo & Company

Advised Grainger plc on the sale of a portfolio of 1,203 residential home reversion properties located across the UK to Clifden Holdings Limited

Advised the limited partners of Resolution Life L.P. in the proposed acquisition by its subsidiary, Resolution Life Holdings, Inc., of Lincoln Benefit Life for $600mm

Advised Transpower New Zealand, the state owned owner-operator of New Zealand’s electricity distribution network on the sale of its wholly owned subsidiary d-cyphaTrade Limited to the Australian Securities Exchange. d-cyphaTrade specializes in the design and marketing of Australian electricity derivatives traded on the ASX24 derivatives platform

Advised the Special Transaction Committee of the Board of Morgans Hotel Group on the transfer of its ownership interests in Delano South Beach and The Light Group to The Yucaipa Companies in exchange for the cancellation of certain securities held by Yucaipa (debt, preferred stock and warrants) together with a $100 million rights offering backstopped by Yucaipa

Advised AvalonBay on its joint acquisition with Equity Residential of the assets and liabilities of Archstone Enterprise LP, an owner of high-quality apartment communities in major markets in the United States, from Lehman Brothers Holdings

Advised The Toronto-Dominion Bank Group on its acquisition of Target Corporation’s REDcard credit card assets

Advised The Hartford, a leading provider of insurance and wealth management services, on the divestiture of its Retirement Plans Group to Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, a leading mutual life insurance company

Advised Merlin Securities LLC, a leading prime brokerage company in the US, on its sale to Wells Fargo

Advised Virgin Money, a financial services provider, on the acquisition of Northern Rock, a UK retail mortgage and savings bank, from UK Financial Investments Ltd, which manages the UK Government’s investments in financial institutions

Advised Close Brothers Group plc, an independent financial services group, on the sale of its 49.9% stake in Mako Global, a market maker in exchange traded derivatives, to Mako’s management

Advised Boyd Gaming Corporation, a leading gaming operator in Nevada, the Midwest and South, on the acquisition of Imperial Palace Casino Resort and Spa in Biloxi, Mississippi

Advised Centrebet International, a leading International online wagering and gaming operator on the recommended cash offer by Sportingbet plc

Advised Close Brothers plc, an independent financial services group, on the sale of its Cayman based offshore business to Intertrust Group Holdings SA

Advised Suncorp, on the sale of its investment management business, Tyndall Investments, in Australia and New Zealand to Nikko Asset Management, a leading Asian mutual funds management company

Advised the Special Committee of Wesco Financial Corporation in connection with Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s proposal to acquire the remaining 19.9% of the shares of Wesco’s common stock that it does not presently own

Advised FirstRand Limited, one of the largest financial services groups in Africa, on the sale of its 45% stake in FirstRand STI Holdings Limited (OUTsurance), South Africa’s leading direct personal lines insurer, to RMB Holdings Limited

Advised Coin Acceptors, Inc. (“CoinCo”), a privately-owned US-based manufacturer of payment solutions for the automated point-of-sale industry, on the sale of its UK-based Money Controls subsidiary to Crane Co., a diversified manufacturer of highly engineered industrial products

Advised Travelers, the largest listed property and casualty insurance company in the U.S., on the acquisition of a ~43% stake in J. Malucelli Participacao em Seguros E Resseguros, the leading surety insurance company in Brazil, through the issue of new common shares (with an option to increase to 49.9% within 18 months)

Advised Aevum Limited, an ASX listed owner, operator and developer of retirement villages and aged care facilities on its response to a hostile takeover offer from Stockland Ltd, a global property development and investment management group

Private Label Credit Card Business
Advised Kohl’s Corporation on a strategic alliance relating to its private label credit card business with Capital One Financial Corporation

Advised term loan and credit facility lenders to the Tishman Speyer partnership holding a portfolio of 28 office buildings in Washington D.C. and the surrounding area on a restructuring which resulted in payoff of the facilities in full

Advised AXA Private Equity, a leading European diversified private equity firm, on the acquisition of a portfolio of limited partnership interests in private equity funds from Bank of America

Advised Primerica Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Citigroup Inc., on a series of transactions, including the concurrent sale of a minority stake to Warburg Pincus and initial public offering

Advised Minerva plc, a UK real estate development company, on its successful defence following an unsolicited offer from KiFin Limited, a company that makes investments for the benefit of Mr Nathan Kirsh

Acted as Joint Financial Adviser to Ladbrokes plc, a leading UK based betting and gaming company, on its rights issue

Advised PartnerRe Ltd., a leading global reinsurer, providing multi-line reinsurance to insurance companies, on its acquisition of PARIS RE Holdings Ltd., a French-listed, Swiss-based diversified reinsurer

Advised Close Brothers Group plc, an independent financial services group, on the sale of its corporate finance subsidiary to Daiwa Securities SMBC Europe Ltd.

Advised NewSmith Capital, an independent investment management group, on a strategic agreement with UniCredit whereby UniCredit will acquire NewSmith’s Financial Products credit advisory business, assume a 5% stake in NewSmith Capital and become an investor in NewSmith funds

Advised a consortium of leading global financial institutions and investors, including but not limited to Banc of America Securities LLC; Citigroup Global Markets Inc.; Dresdner Kleinwort Securities LLC; Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc.; and UBS Securities LLC, on its participation in a recapitalization of Ambac Financial Group, Inc.

Advised Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc, the third largest options market in the US and the nation's oldest stock exchange, on its sale to the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc.

Advised Nikko Cordial, one of Japan’s largest securities firms, on its share exchange with Citigroup Inc., which resulted in Citigroup’s acquisition of the remaining 32% of Nikko Cordial that it did not already own

Acted as sole financial adviser to Ceridian Corporation, an information services provider to the human resource, transportation and retail markets, on its sale to Thomas H. Lee Partners and Fidelity National Financial

Advised Crescent Real Estate Equities Company, a REIT holding a diversified portfolio of office properties, hotels and resorts and luxury residential developments on its sale to Morgan Stanley Real Estate

Advised The Charles Schwab Corporation on its acquisition of The 401(K) Company from Nationwide Financial. The 401(K) Company is a leading provider of defined contribution retirement administration services

Advised Visa USA in its announced plans to merge with Visa Canada and Visa International to form Visa Inc., a new public global corporation

Advised Republic Companies Group, Inc., a regional provider of personal and commercial property and casualty insurance products

(25.1% stake)
Advised The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc., the largest electronic equity securities market in the United States, on the acquisition of a 25.1% stake in London Stock Exchange plc

Advised Ibbotson Associates on its sale to Morningstar Inc. for $83 million