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Freshfields advises Näder Holding on the repurchase of Ottobock shares from EQT and refinancing
Global law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) advises Näder Holding GmbH & Co. KG (‘Näder Holding’) on the repurchase of 20% of the shares in Ottobock SE & Co. KGaA (‘Ottobock’) from the Swedish private equity firm EQT and a new refinancing of Näder Holding.
With the acquisition, Näder Holding indirectly becomes the sole shareholder of Ottobock, one of the world's leading companies in the manufacture of prostheses, orthoses, wheelchairs and exoskeletons. EQT acquired the 20% minority stake in 2017. Näder Holding is majority-owned by Hans Georg Näder and his two daughters.
Freshfields' advice includes the structuring of the overall transaction and all legal aspects of the acquisition, including advice on a vendor loan to be granted by EQT and on an intragroup reorganisation on the acquirer side. Freshfields also advised on the complex €1.1 billion debt fund financing entered into in connection with the acquisition.
The Freshfields team was led by Partner Christoph H. Seibt (Corporate/M&A, Hamburg) and included Partner Michael Josenhans (Finance, Frankfurt) as well as Counsels Justus Anacker (Corporate/M&A, Düsseldorf) and Alexander Pospisil (Finance, Frankfurt/Berlin). The team further comprised:
Partners: Frank Laudenklos (Finance, Frankfurt), Alexander Schwahn (Tax, Hamburg), Philipp Dohnke (IP/IT, Hamburg), Igor Gerber (Corporate/M&A, Frankfurt), Klaus-Stefan Hohenstatt (Labour Law, Hamburg), Katrin Gaßner (Antitrust Law, Düsseldorf)
Counsel: Marius Scherb (IP/IT, Hamburg), Lukas Pomaroli (Sanctions, Vienna), Sascha Arnold (Regulatory, Hamburg), Uwe Salaschek (Foreign Trade Law, Berlin)
Principal Associates: Tobias Dreßler, Marlen Vesper-Gräske (both Corporate/M&A, Hamburg), Noel Zamani (Corporate M&A, Vienna), Tobias Franz (Tax, Hamburg), Philipp Roos (Data Protection, Düsseldorf), Dennis Chinnow (Finance, Frankfurt), Flavia Lang (Labour Law, Hamburg), Sebastian Breder (Real Estate, Frankfurt)
Associates: Kristin Kapral, Jean Mohamed, Maximilian Sander, Désirée Höwing, Jens-Ole Steiner (all Corporate/M&A, Hamburg), Lucas Lengersdorf, Alexander Bräuer (both Finance, Frankfurt), Hanna Rieß (Finance, Berlin), Asta von Kienitz, Yvonne Wolski (both IP/IT, Hamburg), Jan Kothe (Tax, Hamburg), Vincent Fischer (Data Protection, Düsseldorf), Carolina Gerstacker (Corporate/M&A, Vienna), Marcel Blumör (Real Estate, Frankfurt), Tensin Studer (Sanctions, Vienna)
Regina Thums provided in-house legal advice on the transaction on the purchaser side.
Teams led by Hamburg partner Prof. Christoph H. Seibt had already advised Näder Holding on the entry of EQT as Ottobock's minority shareholder, as well as on M&A transactions, and also advised the Ottobock Group in particular on corporate law matters and financing.
