Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance London Equity Capital Markets team celebrates deal run

The Clifford Chance London Equity Capital Markets (ECM) team has completed a stellar fortnight, announcing a number of IPOs, London listings and secondary issues, acting for a range of issuer and underwriter clients. The activity demonstrates Clifford Chance's market-leading position for ECM work as markets see a return to strength following the lull caused by the UK vote to leave the European Union.

On 6th September, new client Jackpotjoy announced its de-listing from the Toronto Stock Exchange and standard listing in London. Clifford Chance is advising on the deal, with a team led by Simon Thomas, Alex Bafi and Katherine Moir, supported by senior associates Claudius Furtwängler and Olivier Plessis, and associates James Koessler, Ryan Bosch and Mary Bartle. In connection with the London listing, Jackpotjoy is refinancing its debt, with London High Yield partner Michael Dakin and Banking partner John Dawson advising on the proposed high yield offering and consent solicitation process. Senior associates Chris Wall and Caroline Tan are assisting the team.

On 14th September, new clients Pure Gym Group and US private equity firm CCMP Capital announced the proposed IPO and London premium listing of the Group. Partners Simon Thomas, Jonny Myers and John Connolly are leading the team, supported by senior associates Ben Morgan, Chris Osborne and Sean Coleman, and associates Sarah Deering and Lisa Wang.

The following day, Biffa, a leading UK waste management business, also announced its proposed IPO and London premium listing. A team led by Adrian Cartwright and John Connolly is advising the underwriters, including Citi and J.P. Morgan Cazenove, supported by senior associates Chris Roe and Chris Osborne, and associate James Koessler. In conjunction with the IPO, the Clifford Chance Banking team, led by Robert Lee, is also advising the lending banks on a refinancing of Biffa's debt.

In addition to the listings, the same fortnight has seen the ECM team announce two further high profile transactions. In the first, the team is advising existing client Secure Trust Bank on its step-up from the AIM market to the premium listing segment of the Official List. The team is being led by Adrian Cartwright, supported by senior associate Tony Lally and associate Sarah Deering. The transaction follows on from the ECM team's work advising on the IPOs and London premium listings of CYBG (formerly known as Clydesdale Bank) and Metro Bank earlier in the year, further bolstering the firm's credentials as the go-to advisers for UK challenger banks.

Finally, a joint Corporate and ECM team is advising existing client Informa on its £715m rights issue to fund its £1.2 billion acquisition of US rival Penton. The Clifford Chance team is being led by Corporate partner Steven Fox and Capital Markets partner John Connolly, supported by senior associates Tony Lally, William Chew and Carolyn Tan, and associates Lisa Wang and Manav Melwani.

The run of deals was reflected in the Legal 500 rankings released last week, with the London ECM team being ranked in Tier 1 for the second year in a row.