Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance advises global hygiene and health company Essity on the sale of its majority stake in Vinda

Global law firm Clifford Chance has advised leading hygiene and health company Essity AB on the proposed sale of its controlling stake in Vinda International Holdings Limited (Vinda), to be implemented by way of a pre-conditional voluntary cash offer made by Isola Castle Ltd, a company indirectly wholly owned by Asia Pacific Resources International Limited, to acquire 100% of the shares in Vinda.

The transaction is the largest third party offer for a Hong Kong listed company announced in 2023 so far, with an offer price which corresponds to an equity value of Vinda of approximately HK$28.3 billion (US$3.6 billion). Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions. 

Lead partner Amy Ho said, "We are proud to have advised Essity on this high-profile transaction, which demonstrates our expertise in navigating complex M&A and capital market transactions and our ability to deliver seamless service to our corporate enterprise clients. We look forward to continuing our work with Essity to advance their strategic objectives in Asia Pacific and beyond."

Amy was supported by a core team including partner Tommy Tam, counsel Ryan Wong and associates Cecilia Chan, Anson Wong and Tobias Wong. The core team is further supported by partner Yi Yang, senior associate Ji Chen and associate Emily Tong in Shanghai. Partner Ling Ho advised on IP aspects. Partner Bai Yong and counsel Dayu Man advised on antitrust aspects.

Essity is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and conducts sales in approximately 150 countries under leading global brands TENA and Tork and other well-known brands including Tempo, Libero and Libresse.  The company traces its roots to the founding of Swedish forest products company Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget (SCA), and was renamed Essity after splitting from its timber, paper and pulp operations.

Its subsidiary Vinda is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and is one of Asia's largest manufacturers and distributors of tissue and other personal care products.

Clifford Chance regularly advises global corporates on their most significant transactions in Asia Pacific, including previously advising SCA on its pre-IPO investment in Vinda, its takeover of Vinda in 2013, and the subsequent injection of its businesses in Taiwan, South Korea and South East Asia for integration with Vinda. More recently, the firm advised Carrefour on the sale of a majority stake in Carrefour Taiwan and Volkswagen on its strategic investment in XPENG.