A Weil team, led by New York partner Morgan Bale, advised Goldman Sachs as joint lead arranger, joint bookrunner and administrative agent for a $3.5 billion senior unsecured bridge facility in connection the $6.7 billion strategic investment by Walgreen Co. (Walgreens), the largest drug store chain in the United States, in Alliance Boots GmbH, a Switzerland-based international pharmacy-led health and beauty group from Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. The bridge facility and the investment closed on August 2, 2012.
Walgreens and Alliance Boots are the largest retail pharmacy, health and daily living destinations in the US and Europe, respectively, and together they would be the global leader in pharmacy-led, health and well-being retail with over 11,000 stores in 12 countries; the largest global pharmaceutical wholesale and distribution network with over 370 distribution centers delivering to more than 170,000 pharmacies, doctors, health centers and hospitals in 21 countries; and the world’s largest purchaser of prescription drugs and many other health and well-being products.
The Weil team advising Goldman Sachs was led by Banking & Finance partner Morgan Bale, and included Capital Markets partner Matthew Bloch; M&A partner Michael Aiello; Banking & Finance partners Stephen Lucas (London) and Daniel Dokos; Tax partner William Horton; Regulatory partners Annemagaret Connolly (DC) and Thomas Frongillo (Boston); Capital Markets counsel Stuart Morrissy; Regulatory counsel John O’Loughlin (DC); Banking & Finance associates Heather Viets, Peter Puk and Amara Gossin; Capital Markets associates Andrew Woodworth, Jordan Fasbender, Aman Singh and Laura Salvatori; M&A associate Faraz Rana; Tax associate Michael Breidenbach; and Regulatory associates Jaclyn Essinger (Boston) and Matthew Morton (DC) (all in New York unless otherwise specified).
In addition to Walgreens, Weil’s finance team has advised leading investment banks in connection with event-driven investment grade financings for a number of recent high profile M&A transactions. Highlights thus far in 2012 include advising:
- Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank, as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners and Morgan Stanley as administrative agent, for a $1.9 billion senior unsecured bridge facility for Molson Coors Company, a major beer brewer and distributor, for its $3.5 billion acquisition of StarBev, an operator of nine breweries in Central and Eastern Europe, from CVC Capital Partners, and Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank as underwriters on the related $1.9 billion bond financing. The acquisition of StarBev, which operates breweries in the Czech Republic, Serbia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Montenegro, brings Molson Coors significant growth opportunities in key emerging markets. The Weil team included Banking & Finance partners Morgan Bale and Stephen Lucas (London); Capital Markets partner Jennifer Bensch; M&A partners Michael Aiello, Ian Hamilton (London), David Dederick (Budapest) and Konrad Siegler (Budapest); Banking & Finance associates Zillah Kisswany and Amara Gossin; Capital Markets associates Oliver DeGeest and Janene Menaldino; M&A associates Ryan Gallagher (Silicon Valley), Samantha McGonigle (London), Timea Bana (Budapest), Tamas Simon (Budpaest), Daniel Dozsa (Budapest), Eszter Katona (Budapest) and Gergely Szoboszlai (Budapest); and Tax associates Michael Breidenbach, Erica Rees (London) and Oliver Walker (London) (all in New York unless otherwise specified).
- Barclays, as sole lead arranger, sole bookrunner and administrative agent, for a $1 billion senior unsecured bridge facility for Kellogg Company, a major producer of cereal, snacks and frozen food, to finance, in part, Kellogg’s $2.7 billion acquisition of Procter & Gamble’s Pringles snack business. The acquisition is part of Kellogg’s strategy to expand its international operations, and Pringles’ global footprint moves Kellogg into the number two position in the worldwide savory snacks category. The Weil team included Banking & Finance partners Morgan Bale and Danek Freeman, Capital Markets partners Jennifer Bensch and Mathew Bloch; M&A partner Michael Lubowitz; Tax partner William Horton; Banking & Finance associates Brandon Cherry, Hoyoon Nam and Timothy Soldani; Capital Markets associates Andrew Woodworth, Oliver DeGeest and Ryan Kirk; and Tax associate Michael Breidenbach (all in New York).
With more than 200 dedicated banking and capital markets partners and associates in our offices worldwide, Weil’s Banking & Finance and Capital Markets practice provides “one-stop shopping” on highly complex financings and true international deal execution and local law advice in many of the world’s key jurisdictions, including New York, London, Paris, Frankfurt, and Hong Kong. We regularly advise leading financial institutions including Barclays, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Macquarie Capital, and Morgan Stanley and work in close collaboration with lawyers from the firm’s premier M&A practice to address all facets of acquisition and other event-driven financings.
