Addleshaws in double banking scoop for AIB & NM Rothschild
Addleshaw Goddard’s burgeoning City acquisition finance practice was handed an early Christmas present after scooping two new banking clients – Allied Irish Bank (AIB) and NM Rothschild & Sons.
The acquisition finance practice, which is led by partner Karl Woolley, advised AIB on senior and mezzanine debt and working capital facilities for the secondary buyout of Aktrion Group.
Addleshaws won the work following a recent change of personnel in AIB’s leveraged finance team, which saw the arrival of new London head Bruce Thomson. The bank has historically instructed Lovells and Osborne Clarke.
The firm’s London office also scored its first ever acquisition finance instruction from NM Rothschild & Sons. The bank acted as lead arranger on a £50m acquisition debt package on the management buyout of Haven Europe holiday parks.
Although Addleshaws’ Manchester and Leeds offices already had a relationship with Rothschild, the bank has not previously instructed the London office.
The mandate was handed to London after Rothschild dealt with Woolley when he acted for 3i on the Parkdean AIM flotation in September 2002.
Addleshaws’ London acquisition finance team, which also acts for Barclays Bank and the Royal Bank of Scotland, had a bumper 2004, completing 10 leveraged finance deals in the first six months
of the current financial year.
The firm recruited Simmons & Simmons’ banking head Nick Fisher last October to take on overall responsibility nationally of Addleshaws’ leveraged finance practice
(first revealed on www.thelawyer. com, 11 October 2004).
Addleshaws also boosted its City finance practice by adding two senior leveraged finance associates, Weil Gotshal & Manges’ Phillip Slater and Allen & Overy’s Julie Romer.
