Simon Letherman

概要

Simon Letherman is a partner and head of the London Tax practice.

Simon’s diverse practice includes advising on major mergers and acquisitions, domestic and international banking, structured finance, capital markets, corporate restructurings, private equity, investment funds, financial products, derivatives and real estate transactions. He services a range of industries, including Energy, Financial Institutions, Metals & Mining, Private Capital and TMT.

Simon represents corporate, financial institution, private equity and fund clients, including Anglo American, GE, Intercontinental Exchange, Liberty Global and QIA. Simon is recognised by peers and clients alike for his depth and breadth of tax law expertise on a wide range of UK and international corporate tax matters.

Simon has been ranked “Up and Coming” for Tax in Chambers UK 2024 which describes him as “very strong technically” with “excellent commercial awareness” and “an astute lawyer” who “works hard and solves problems”.

経験

Mergers & Acquisitions

Public M&A

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) on its $11 billion NYSE Euronext acquisition including the New York Stock Exchange, the subsequent carve-out of LIFFE and €1.3 billion spin-off and IPO of Euronext. Awarded “Equity Deal of the Year”, IFLR1000 European Awards, 2015.
Liberty Global on its $23.3 billion merger with Virgin Media. Awarded “Western Europe Deal of the Year ($5 billion plus)”, M&A Atlas Awards, 2014.
Liberty Global on its takeover of Cable & Wireless Communications plc at an enterprise value of $8.2 billion.
Qatar Investment Authority on its £6.7 billion takeovers of Canary Wharf Group plc and Songbird Estates plc.
Liberty Global on its split-off of Liberty Latin America Ltd, with an enterprise value of approximately $9.3 billion.
Boston Scientific Corporation on its $4.2 billion recommended offer to acquire BTG plc.

Private M&A – Sport and TMT

New England Sports Ventures on its acquisition of Liverpool Football Club.
Discovery, Inc. on its agreement with BBC Studios to partition their 50/50 UKTV joint venture into legacy lifestyle and entertainment businesses.
Viacom on its £450 million acquisition of Channel 5 Broadcasting.
Vice Media on its European joint venture with Antenna Group.
Circet on its acquisition of in-home telecom maintenance business Qube GB.
Vivendi on the sale of the Parlophone Label Group to Warner Music Group for £487 million.

Private M&A – Transport and Aerospace

General Electric (GE) on its $4.3 billion acquisition from Cinven of the Avio group, an Italian headquartered aerospace systems business. Awarded “European Private Equity Tax Deal of the Year”, International Tax Review Awards, 2014.
Marubeni Corporation, INCJ and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines on the disposal of the shipping vessels group, Seajacks.
Anglo American on the business combination between its nuGen™ Zero Emissions Haulage Solution and First Mode Holdings.

Private M&A – Energy, Mining and Metals

GE on the sale of its Distributed Power business to Advent International for $3.25 billion.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) on the establishment and launch of its crude oil trading unit, ADNOC Trading, based in the Abu Dhabi Global Market.
Anglo American on the sale of its 33.3% shareholding in the Cerrejón joint venture to Glencore for approximately US$294 million, marking the final stage in its transition from thermal coal operations.
ICE on its partnership with ADNOC and nine of the world’s largest energy traders to establish ICE Futures Abu Dhabi, a new Murban oil exchange.
The Supreme Petroleum Council of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and ADNOC on the grant to BP of a 10% interest in Abu Dhabi’s ADCO onshore oil concession, one of the world’s largest onshore concessions, and the issue of new ordinary shares representing approximately 2% of BP’s issued share capital held for the Abu Dhabi Government.

Private M&A – Commodities and Consumer

Fairfax Financial on its acquisition of Meadow Foods from Exponent Private Equity.
Chipita S.A. on the sale of its packaged croissants and baked snacks business to Mondelēz International, Inc. for approximately $2 billion. Awarded “Greece Deal of the Year”, CEE Legal Matters Deal of the Year Awards, 2021.
Tetra Laval group on its acquisition of Avon Rubber p.l.c.’s milkrite | InterPuls business for approximately £180 million.
Etraveli AB, a portfolio company of CVC Capital Partners Fund VI, on its acquisition of e-Travel SA.

Private M&A – Financial Services

Société Générale on its agreement with AllianceBernstein to combine their research and securities brokerage businesses in a new joint venture.
Fairfax Financial Holdings on the $750 million sale of RiverStone insurance to CVC.
Canaccord Genuity on its acquisition of UK strategic advisory business Results International.
GE on the sale of its commercial lending and leasing business in India to a consortium backed by AION Capital Partners.

Investment Funds

Fairfax on its strategic transaction with Helios creating the leading pan-Africa focused alternative investment manager, Helios Fairfax Partners Corporation.
InvestCorp on its strategic investment in China Everbright.
IG4 Capital on the final close of IG4 Capital Private Equity Investment II, structured as a series of English limited partnerships, focusing on private equity investments in special situation opportunities in Latin America.
A major UK investment fund manager in connection with alterations to its prime brokerage arrangements due to Brexit.

Restructuring and Insolvency

DBAY Advisors on its acquisition of a majority stake in haulier Eddie Stobart as part of a rescue package.
Stoneway Capital Corporation in connection with its Chapter 11 debt restructuring and sale to SCC Power plc of its interests in four power generation plants in Argentina. Shortlisted for “Restructuring Deal of the Year” at the Latin Lawyer Awards, 2023.
Investors in London Capital & Finance (LCF) in connection with the judicial review of decisions by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme on the LCF scandal, and with the change in HMRC’s position, so as to allow investors in LCF ISAs to use their compensation payments to reinvest in ISA accounts without this counting against their annual ISA allowance. “Highly Commended” at FT Innovative Lawyer Awards, 2023, and in “Law Firm of the Year” category, Peer2Peer Finance Awards, 2022.
Frigoglass S.A.I.C. on the implementation of an English court scheme of arrangement and the restructuring of the indebtedness of the Frigoglass group. Nominated for “Restructuring Deal of the Year”, Legal Business Awards and IFLR Awards, 2018.
Cyprus Cooperative Bank on its acquisition of €10.3 billion assets and an equivalent amount of liabilities to Hellenic Bank, and Piraeus Bank S.A. on its €4.933 billion recapitalisation and liability management exercise.
Investors in claims against Lehman Brothers International (Europe).
Lower Tier 2 bondholders in The Co-operative Bank on the bank’s £1.5 billion recapitalisation, in the first ever creditor bail-in of a UK bank without taxpayer support. Shortlisted for “Innovative Law Firm in Finance Law”, FT Innovative Lawyer 2014.

Financing

Financing – Loan Finance

The financing sources in Blackstone’s public offer for Italian infrastructure group Atlantia, Europe’s largest ever take-private transaction with an enterprise value of €54 billion.
The lead arrangers on the financing of the €5.1bn acquisition by Apax Funds and Warburg Pincus of the entire issued share capital of T-Mobile Netherlands.
Ares Management on the unitranche financing of the acquisition by Goldman Sachs Asset Management of a stake in insurance business The Clear Group.
The banks on the senior financing in support of the £2.3 billion public-to-private acquisition of Aggreko plc by TDR Capital and I Squared Capital.
BNP Paribas as facility agent on the $15 billion refinancing of Toyota Motor Credit Corporation's credit facilities.
Coca-Cola European Partners plc on the €5 billion financing for its merger with Coca-Cola Erfrischungsgetranke GmbH and Coca-Cola Iberian Partners.

Financing – Debt Capital Markets

The initial purchasers on the $7.75 billion notes issue by Reckitt Benckiser Treasury Services plc in connection with the acquisition of Mead Johnson Nutrition Company.
Ardagh Packaging Finance plc and Ardagh Holdings USA Inc., as co-issuers, on the offering of their $2.2 billion senior secured notes and their $1 billion 6% senior notes.
The initial purchasers on Travelodge’s offering of £330 million senior secured notes due 2028 and €250 million senior secured floating rate notes due 2028, issued by TVL Finance and the arrangers on Travelodge’s entry into a new super senior revolving credit facilities agreement.
A syndicate of 20 investment banks in connection with GTECH’s acquisition financing of approximately $10.7 billion in aggregate relating to its acquisition of International Game Technology. At the time, the transaction was the largest bond offering by an Italian issuer in the international capital markets.
Banco do Brasil, the Brazilian state-owned bank and one of the largest banks in Brazil, in connection with the update of its $20 billion Medium Term Note Program.
The underwriters on The Royal Bank of Scotland’s $3.15 billion inaugural contingent convertible additional Tier 1 capital notes offering.
Coca-Cola European Partners US, LLC on its solicitations of consents to substitute Coca Cola European Partners plc as the issuer and principal debtor of its euro-denominated notes.

Financing – Equity Capital Markets

Liberty Global on its $2.5 billion Dutch auction tender offer and share buy-back.
Orange on the sale of approximately 133 million shares in BT for £383 million and the issue of bonds exchangeable into BT shares for approximately £520 million.
ADNOC in connection with its $1.64 billion combined offering of shares in ADNOC Distribution and issue of equity-linked bonds.
Liberty Global on its issue of tracking shares, the first such issue by a UK public company.
Gulf Marine Services on its capital raising through a placing and open offer on the London Stock Exchange.
The underwriters in connection with the €670 million privatisation and IPO of Nova Ljubljanska banka on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange.

Financing – Structured Finance and Derivatives

Liberty Global on hedging arrangements in connection with the Virgin Media/02 merger.
Mubadala Capital on the establishment of an $3.5 billion evergreen origination platform with Barings.
Ardagh Group S.A. on its €850 million asset-backed revolving credit facility secured by inventory and receivables originated in the UK, Europe and the US.
Piraeus Bank S.A. on the sale of a €1.95 billion portfolio of non-performing and denounced corporate credit exposures, backed by real-estate collateral, to Bain Capital Credit LP, the first commercial real-estate backed NPL transaction in Greece.
Attica Bank on the securitisation of its non-performing loans.

Financing – Project Finance

Petronas on the $15 billion financing and development of the $28 billion RAPID (Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development) project in Malaysia.
The lenders on the financing of a $12 billion integrated gasification and combined cycle energy project within the Jazan refinery and terminal complex in Saudi Arabia. Awarded “Global Deal of the Year”, PFI Awards, 2021 and “MENA Hybrid Energy Deal of the Year”, IJGlobal Awards, 2021.
The Dow Chemical Company on the restructuring of over $10 billion of existing conventional and sharia-compliant debt of the Sadara Chemical Company (Dow’s joint venture with Saudi Aramco), which owns and operates the $20 billion world-scale integrated Sadara chemicals complex in Saudi Arabia. Awarded “MENA Petrochemicals Deal of the Year”, IJGlobal Awards, 2021.
The lenders on the development and financing of the $3.4 billion 2,400 MW Hassyan coal fired Independent Power Producer (IPP) in Dubai.