A&O bags Unicredit hat trick with subsidiary's Ukrainian purchase

Allen & Overy (A&O) has secured its third deal in two months for banking group Unicredit, advising on Bank Austria Creditanstalt's (BA-CA) acquisition of Ukrainian bank Ukrsotsbank.

BA-CA, which is part of the Unicredit Group, acquired 95 per cent of Ukrsotsbank from Interpipe Group for E1.52bn (£1.03bn).

A&O partner Pervez Akhtar, who led the team working on the deal, said: "We've advised on many Unicredit transactions in the past five years, including several deals in the last two months. It's a fantastic client that's doing a lot of interesting transactions."

Last month (28 June) www.thelawyer.com reported that A&O advised BA-CA on the purchase of Kazakhstan's ATF Bank.

Akhtar, who also advised on that deal, explained that parent company Unicredit is turning to a number of different markets to continue its acquisition spree.

A statement from Unicredit said the acquisitions of Ukrsotsbank and ATF Bank represent a further step by Unicredit Group to strengthen its position in Central and Eastern Europe.

Akhtar said: "Unicredit is looking to consolidate in the banking sector. The recent acquisitions demonstrate its dedication to advancing in this area. Unicredit is turning to Eastern Europe because it presents many opportunities."

Advising on acquisitions in a number of different jurisdictions presents challenges, Akhtar added. "There's often a tight timeframe for transactions such as these. This, along with complicated regulatory requirements, makes the transactions more interesting and challenging," he said.

Clifford Chance advised Interpipe as the sellers on this transaction. Credit Suisse and Unicredit Markets & Investment Banking acted as financial advisers to Unicredit and BA-CA.