Market Standards Trend Report
Trends in UK Public M&A deals in 2025
Background and approach
This report provides an insight into UK public M&A activity in 2025 and what we expect to see in 2026.
LexisNexis Market Standards has conducted research to examine market trends in respect of UK public M&A deals announced in 2025. We reviewed a total of 129 transactions involving Main Market and AIM companies that were subject to the Takeover Code (the Code): 56 firm offers, 58 possible offers and 15 announcements of formal sale processes, private sale processes and/or strategic reviews, which were announced between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025.
The percentages included in this report have been rounded up or down to whole numbers, as appropriate. Accordingly, the percentages may not in aggregate add up to 100%. Deal values have been rounded to the nearest million (where expressed in millions) and have been rounded to the nearest hundred million (where expressed in billions). The final date for inclusion of developments in this report is 31 December 2025.
Highlights from 2025
Executive summary
Takeover activity
Public M&A activity in 2025 saw a slight increase in deal volumes, with 56 firm offers announced (2024: 55 firm offers).
Although volume was higher, aggregate deal value was lower at £40.5bn, compared to £54.9bn in 2024 and £19.6bn in 2023. The average deal value was £723m (2024: £997m; 2023: £350m).
2025 continued to feature large-cap transactions, though fewer mega-deals than 2024, with 12 (21%) of the 56 firm offers exceeding £1bn (2024: 17 deals, 31%). The largest transactions were two £4.2bn offers for Spectris plc by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. (KKR) and Advent International, L.P. Other notable deals included the £3.4bn acquisition of Petershill Partners plc by Goldman Sachs Asset Management L.P. and the £2.9bn takeover of Deliveroo plc by DoorDash, Inc.
The average bid premium was approximately 46% (2024: 44%; 2023: 54%), with premiums ranging from a high of 280% (offer for Trakm8 Holdings plc by Constellation Software Inc) to a low of a 94% discount (offer for Argentex Group plc by IFX (UK) Ltd).
"Following a relatively quiet start to UK public M&A activity in the first quarter of 2025, there was a significant pick-up in activity during the second quarter, culminating in one of the busiest summers in years (some of the largest deals of the year being announced in July and August, including the competing offers for Spectris and the offers for Just Group and Alpha Group). However, momentum did not carry through to the rest of the year – at least in the UK – and the market quietened considerably (both in terms of volume and value of firm and possible offers) towards the latter part of Q3 and into Q4. In particular, the top-end of the market was noticeably subdued, with only one >£1bn Code governed offer (the offer for JTC plc by Permira) announced during this period. This is in stark contrast to the U.S., where the final quarter of 2025 has seen the resurgence of big-ticket megadeals. This was perhaps partly a product of the uncertainty surrounding the UK economic and fiscal environment precipitated by the late budget (announced in late November this year), however the degree to which this prevented deal making should not be over-stated particularly given the fact that there were a number of high value transactions involving UK targets outside the public markets during this time (for example, Teck Resources’ merger with Anglo American and Athora’s acquisition of Prudential Insurance Corporation).
Without the buffer of a large internal/domestic market, the UK is more susceptible to geopolitical tensions and disruptive events such as tariffs and the drop in >£1bn offers (as compared to 2024) in part reflects some caution by parties in launching larger value and higher risk deals in an uncertain macro-environment (combined with domestic uncertainties such as this year’s late budget). Nonetheless, high value (both actual and potential) competing offers for targets such as Spectris, Assura and JTC, high bid premia offered for Just Group (c. 75%) and Alphawave (c. 96%), and a possible further bid by BHP for Anglo American, suggest that quality UK-listed assets remain very much in demand. The relative drop in large public M&A deals must also be seen in the context of what was, in hindsight, a buoyant 2024. Overall, continuing high levels of interest shown by international bidders indicate that many still find UK targets attractive amidst continuing perceived undervaluation by the London public markets and the resulting desire of international bidders to capitalize on this."
P2P activity
There was an increase in the number of public to private (P2P) transactions announced in 2025 compared to 2024, with 30 (54%) of the 56 firm offers announced involving private equity, family offices/individuals or sovereign wealth funds. In 2024, 23 (42%) of the 55 firm offers announced involved private equity, family offices or individuals.
Despite higher deal volumes, deal values for P2P transactions decreased in 2025, with an aggregate deal value of £21.5bn (2024: £24.6bn), which represented 53% of total deal value (2024: 45%) and an average deal value of £716m (2024: £1.1bn).
The two largest transactions were for Spectris by competing bidders, KKR and Advent, valued at £4.2bn each.
"Appetite for public to privates remains strong and, whilst not all of this interest has translated into firm offers, it is worth noting that financial sponsors were active in almost all of the competitive situations in 2025, including against strategics, demonstrating a willingness to compete for high-quality assets. Although average deal values fell across the board, there were some notable exceptions, such as the competing bids for Spectris, which showed that the right large-cap deals are still possible. Post-announcement, pre-completion syndication, both in the debt and equity markets, and consortium and/or co-investor bids have also helped to enable both large and mid-cap deals by reducing single party exposure and mitigating risk. Capital still needs to be deployed and the FTSE 100's weighting towards banking, oil & gas and utility sectors could make it an attractive market for take privates in 2026."
"Financial sponsors continue to feature heavily in UK public M&A and while strategic bidders were more prevalent in the first half, the number of sponsor or financial investor-backed offers and offers by strategics was broadly similar in the second half. Sponsors are increasingly willing to engage in competition for attractive assets (or, seen from the other side, strategic bidders are less afraid to compete against sponsors). We have seen Blackstone competing against Tritax Big Box for Warehouse REIT and KKR against PHP for Assura this year. More unusually, competition between sponsors is also hotting up, for example in KKR’s battle with Advent over Spectris, and Permira and Warburg Pincus’ competing for JTC at possible offer stage. Although not quite at the peak seen in 2024, levels of “dry powder” remain elevated, meaning that there will be considerable and ongoing pressure on sponsors to usefully deploy their capital. Bolt-on or “buy and build” acquisitions by sponsor-backed portfolio companies may also be a feature, particularly in the business and financial services sectors, which are more likely to drive activity in the mid-market.
Nonetheless, it is likely that there will be less “easy pickings”, even for cash-rich sponsors, as stronger competition for quality assets (notably, sponsors were involved in almost all the competitive bids that arose in 2025) and increasingly robust target boards (as well as stances taken by institutional and other investors) on valuations, may mean richer valuations and higher premias will be required to win board recommendations and, crucially, shareholder support. It could also mean more consortium offers as sponsors look to bolster their firepower and mitigate concentration risks by teaming up with other parties (whether other sponsors or strategics, each of which we saw in 2025)."
Bidder jurisdiction
Overseas bidders were involved in 36 firm offers with an aggregate deal value of £32.3bn, representing 80% of the aggregate deal value for all firm offers during 2025 (2024: £36.9bn, 67%).
US bidders were involved in 19 firm offers, representing 34% of all firm offers, with an aggregate deal value of £24.7bn (2024: 16 firm offers, £18.9bn). This represented 61% of the aggregate deal value in 2025 (2024: 34%).
While UK and North American bidders continued to dominate, 2025 saw increased participation from other jurisdictions, including the Middle East, Asia and continental Europe, highlighting growing international interest in UK targets.
"Despite sterling appreciating c. 7% against the US dollar in 2025, the currency continues to trade below long-term average levels. This exchange rate dynamic coupled with the fact that UK equities continue to trade at lower price-to-earnings multiples compared with their US counterparts, has made UK companies attractive targets for US bidders. Interestingly we haven’t seen the headline-grabbing blockbuster deals that have been happening stateside. We attribute this to US companies capitalising on a more favourable regulatory climate to focus their attention on transformative M&A in their domestic market."
Industry
Public M&A activity was spread across a range of sectors in 2025, with the most active sectors being Financial Services (15), Industrials (10), Property (seven), Technology (seven) and Energy (five), which collectively accounted for 89% of all firm offers announced during 2025. Financial Services led by aggregate deal value at £12.3bn (30%), followed by Industrials (£9.9bn, 24%), Property (£6.3bn, 16%) and Technology (£5.9bn, 14%).
"We expect further consolidation in the mining and metals sector as companies seek to secure critical mineral supplies and reposition their portfolios to take advantage of elevated levels of critical mineral demand driven by the energy transition. We also expect further activity in the oil & gas sector with energy companies seeking to enhance their portfolios with strategic assets and dispose of non-core assets, while also looking to utilise acquired tax losses against future profits."
Deal structure
Schemes of arrangement continued to be the preferred structure of choice for bidders in 2025, with 49 (88%) of the 56 firm offers announced structured as a scheme of arrangement. Two bidders (Blackstone in the competitive bid for Warehouse REIT, and the consortium of KKR and Stonepeak for Assura) switched from a scheme of arrangement to a takeover offer.
Nature of consideration and bid financing
93% of firm offers announced in 2025 included some form of cash element, and it was the exclusive form of consideration in 64% of deals. By comparison, in 2024, cash featured in 85% of the deals and was the exclusive form of consideration in 62% of deals.
Unrecommended bids
There was one firm offer in 2025 which was a hostile takeover bid (Inspired plc bid by Regent International Holdings Limited). Additionally, four firm offers became unrecommended following actual competing bids.
Competing offers
Five targets were the subject of actual competing offers:
- actual competing offers for Harmony Energy Income Trust by Drax Group plc and Foresight Group LLP
- actual competing offers for Assura plc by a consortium comprising KKR/Stonepeak Partners and Primary Health Properties plc
- actual competing offers for Inspired plc by Regent International Holdings Limited and HGGC, LLC
- actual competing offers for Warehouse REIT by Tritax Big Box REIT, and Blackstone Europe LLP
- actual competing offers for Spectris plc by KKR and Advent
"The reluctance of certain institutional investors to give irrevocables has been a well-established trend. Nevertheless, 2025 saw plenty of irrevocables being given. This likely reflects the significant premiums being paid in many of the transactions that convinced shareholders to agree to help lock in deals."
Possible offers
There were 58 possible offers announced in 2025 in respect of 47 companies, a 14% increase compared to 2024, which saw 51 possible offers announced in respect of 47 companies. Of these, 30 (52%) progressed to firm intention announcements, 23 (40%) terminated and five (9%) remained ongoing as of 31 December 2025. In addition, 15 companies announced formal sale processes, private sale processes and/or strategic reviews during 2025, with nine (60%) listed on AIM and six (40%) in the Main Market. None resulted in a firm offer being announced, five (33%) terminated and ten (67%) were ongoing at year-end.
Legal and regulatory developments
Legal and regulatory developments and Panel updates in 2025 included:
- Takeover Panel (Panel) confirms amendments to the Code addressing dual class share structures, strengthening IPO disclosure requirements and simplifying the share buyback regime, with effect from 4 February 2026
- Panel publishes Practice Statements 35 and 36
- The Panel announces minor amendments to Rule 2.9 of the Code to clarify and enhance offer-period disclosure requirements, effective from 4 February 2026
- Panel publishes 2024–2025 Annual Report
- UK Government announces series of reforms to overhaul the scope of the National Security and Investment Act 2021 (NSIA)
- UK Government blocks graphene joint venture with Chinese investor on national security grounds
- UK Government conditionally clears IonQ/Oxford Ionics merger under the NSIA
- High Court dismisses second judicial review challenge to FTDI divestment order made under the NSIA
- UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) prohibits for a second time Spreadex/Sport Index merger
- CMA publishes its updated guidance on merger procedure
- CMA expected review of approach to merger efficiencies
- Commission consults on revised merger guidelines
- CMA publishes revised guidance on merger remedies
- European Commission (the Commission) sends statement of objections to Vivendi in merger gun-jumping investigation
- Commission publishes fifth annual FDI annual screening report
- Reforms to EU FDI Screening Regulation agreed
"A number of bids during 2025 (including Harwood Capital’s offer for Frenkel Topping Group) have seen the inclusion of paper or other forms of consideration as an alternative to cash, including deferred consideration through the use of CVR (contingent value rights) instruments. The Panel has recently released its new Practice Statement 36 setting out its practice in relation to unlisted share alternatives and this is welcome guidance on what is often seen as a complex and difficult area of the Takeover Code to navigate."
Outlook for 2026
"Predicting bid activity for the coming year is never an exact science and the prevailing economic and geo-political environment could (as in previous years) result in a largely static market from a purely statistical perspective. However, there is cause for optimism, as we are seeing a greater level of interest in UK opportunities across our network. While interest from North American prospective bidders continues to be a significant trend, enquiries from continental bidders also seem to be on the rise. It remains to be seen whether this translates into substantive transactions."
"We expect the volume of public bids to increase as we move into 2026. There is significant early interest in opportunities at the current time, and we believe that the environment is ripe for more opportunities to turn into realities. There is a favourable market for bid financing and financial sponsors are keen to deploy capital at attractive multiples. Bidders are also keen to take advantage of a regulatory environment that is more favourably inclined in relation to consolidation. We believe that there will be increasingly strong activity at all levels of the market including £1 billion plus. As market confidence increases, we anticipate the number of high value transactions will also increase. We expect the number of competing bids to increase in 2026 as the demand for strong assets grows. We expect increased public to private activity in 2026.We expect the trend for consortium bids to continue. Broadly syndicated equity (both before and after form offer announcement) will continue to be a feature of public to private transactions. We expect the use of private credit and stub equity structures to remain a common feature of private capital bids as well as increasingly being seen as part of the “toolkit” for strategic buyers. As in 2025, we expect activity to be across a wide range of sectors with continuing significant activity in the technology, financial services and industrials sectors and increasing activity in healthcare and business sectors. The ongoing international tariff wars are causing disruption across a range of sectors with a particular effect on manufacturers and distributors. The stresses caused by this disruption is likely to drive consolidation in certain areas. We expect UK companies to continue to be attractive to international buyers with the most interest coming from the US, Middle East and Asia. We expect to see continued active shareholder and activist activity across a range of sectors. This is likely to be particularly the case for businesses weakened by changing trade flows or consumer / technology businesses affected by the introduction of Al. We have also seen a tick up in formal sale / private sale processes at the end of 2025 and we expect business disruption caused by wider macroeconomic changes to also drive an increase in these activities. There has been a trend in 2025 for substantial shareholders to be more active, there has been a significant increase in offers by large shareholders in 2025 and more large shareholders are willing to reach out privately to /or take a call from, potential bidders with a view to facilitating an offer. We expect this trend to continue in 2026."
"We remain cautiously optimistic that 2026 will see an uptick in activity from the end of 2025. While UK takeover activity declined towards the end of 2025, we view this as a temporary pause by bidders to take stock of the situation. Greater clarity in the UK business environment following the budget, coupled with relatively stable and somewhat more favorable and flexible financing conditions (where in some instances we are seeing interest rates on private credit financings being priced at similar levels to broadly syndicated loans for deals involving reliable borrowers, as well as more creative private credit facilities such as loans with payment-in-kind optionality), combined with indications of a more benign regulatory environment (given the emphasis on a pro-growth agenda by the government), should encourage activity. We are continuing to see strong interest from strategic bidders (in particular, international bidders), particularly at the higher end of the market, as well as strong volumes of interest from financial sponsors. We expect technology as well as financial, business and support services to remain among the most targeted sectors – with increasing investment in AI driving the race to scale-up in computing power and associated intellectual property, and in AI-adjacent infrastructure (such as data centres) required to support the technology. Financial and professional support services should continue to drive mid-market activity, as their asset-lite, cash generative profiles continue to attract private equity sponsors especially those pursuing “buy and build” and consolidation strategies in what largely remain fragmented markets.
It is clear that international, and U.S. bidders in particular, will continue to drive activity and we expect to continue to see strong interest from potential U.S. bidders into 2026. In 2025, U.S. bidders (both corporates and financial sponsors) represented over 60% of firm offers in value (and over three quarters of the deals in excess of £1 billion). The U.S. remains the market where corporates with the largest balance sheets and sponsors with the most capital to deploy are based so we do not expect that this trend will abate anytime soon."
"Geopolitical uncertainty was reflected again in UK Public M&A activity in 2025, as the number of public offers varied wildly quarter to quarter. Given the ongoing macroeconomic and political landscape, we expect these sorts of fluctuations will continue into 2026, although the relative stability of the domestic UK economy, along with improved financing conditions, may give bidders more confidence to invest in the UK.
Despite the slowdown at the back end of the year (which was driven, in part at least, by the uncertainty caused by the late November budget), we continued to see interest in the public markets from strategics and PE alike, both domestic and international. The international interest was primarily from North America but we also saw increasing levels of interest from the Middle East, and not just as passive investors. We expect this to translate into positive activity in the new year, both in the mid-market and also in the large-cap space where consortium bids will be used to support valuations.
We expect the trend for target-led sale processes to continue as well, as target management get tired of waiting for a re-rating and the appeal of the public markets declines. On the theme of under-valuation, we anticipate shareholder activism to continue strongly into the new year and robust target defences also to be a theme for 2026."
"We expect an uptick in UK public M&A in 2026, underpinned by hopefully clearer monetary policy, moderating inflation and improved financing markets. Large-cap strategic buyers and private equity (with ample dry powder) should drive activity, targeting undervalued UK assets and complex carve outs. Shareholder activism, valuation gaps and FX dynamics will be pivotal deal catalysts and constraints. In terms of sectors, real estate consolidation is likely to persist in 2026, particularly in logistics, student housing and specialised REITs, where discounts to NAV remain. We also expect elevated activity in infrastructure-adjacent assets (datacentres, fibre, energy transition, etc.), professional services, defence/aerospace supply chains and selective consumer staples with resilient cash flows. Pharma/biotech may reawaken, if capital markets reopen and big pharma replenishes pipelines, albeit with heightened regulatory diligence around the globe."
"We expect 2026 to be busier for UK M&A than 2025, based on current pipeline and investor sentiment. Many of the prevailing global macroeconomic headwinds haven’t gone away, and there are increasingly vocal concerns about an AI bubble, but we nonetheless see plenty of optimism and activity in the market. That is especially the case in sectors like financial and professional services, which have proven to be resilient even in difficult times. Strategic bidders are actively seeking out opportunities, as of course are private capital firms, which bodes well for an interesting year."
"H2 2025 saw some jumbo-sized global deals announced – including the US$55 billion offer for Entertainment Arts and Paramount’s US$108bn hostile bid for Warner Bros Discovery (trumping Netflix’s US$72bn offer) – with large corporates looking at tie-ups that would previously have been considered undeliverable under previous US administrations. With some notable exceptions, UK public M&A activity was skewed towards the mid and lower market in H2 2025 and we expect this to continue into Q1 2026 with the market picking up again in Q2 2026 as companies look for scale and alternative paths to growth amid macro-economic uncertainty. A significant market correction or share price volatility could derail this momentum, but overall, the outlook for 2026 is positive."
"We expect there to be more carve-outs of divisions by listed issuers, particularly those that are easy to pay for and swallow. Shareholders are receptive to listed companies looking to divest non-core businesses and there is strong buyer interest from both strategics and private equity. These processes can in turn drive public M&A activity by making target businesses more streamlined and attractive to potential bidders."
Firm offers included in this report
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Our LexisNexis Market Standards news focuses on updates and analysis related to public company transactions and corporate governance, tailored for Corporate and In-house lawyers. The following news items are relevant to the topics covered in this report. To read more analyses on the latest developments in the market reported by Lexis+® Market Standards, subscribe to the Market Standard news analysis alert (subscription required).
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Weekly Highlights
Previous trend reports
Market Standards Trend Report – AGM Season 2025
In this report, Lexis+® UK Practical Guidance and Market Standards reflect on the voting patterns displayed at the annual general meetings (AGMs) of FTSE 350 companies at the close of the 2025 AGM season, using data extracted from our extensive database of over 11,000 transactions.
Trends in UK public M&A in Q3 2025
This Market Standards Trend Report provides an analysis of 20 transactions announced by Main Market and AIM companies subject to the Takeover Code (the Code) in Q3 2025, comprising 11 firm offers, five possible offers, two formal sale processes, and two strategic reviews.
Trends in UK Public M&A deals in H1 2025
This Market Standards Trend Report provides an in-depth analysis of the 36 firm offers, 42 possible offers and six announcements of formal sale processes and/or strategic reviews, announced by Main Market and AIM companies subject to the Takeover Code (the Code) in H1 2025.
Trends in UK public M&A in Q1 2025
This Market Standards Trend Report provides an analysis of 27 transactions announced by Main Market and AIM companies subject to the Takeover Code (the Code) in Q1 2025, comprising nine firm offers, 14 possible offers, and four formal sale processes.
Trends in UK Equity Capital Markets in 2024
This Market Standards Trend Report provides an in-depth analysis of equity capital markets activity on the London Stock Exchange in 2024, looking at IPOs, introductions, transfers between markets, secondary offers and legal and regulatory developments in the year as well as the outlook for 2025.
Trends in UK public M&A in 2024
This Market Standards trend report provides in-depth analysis of the 55 firm offers, 51 possible offers and 15 announcements of formal sale processes, private sale processes and/or strategic reviews, which were announced by Main Market and AIM companies subject to the Code in 2024. It includes insight into public M&A trends and what we and our contributors expect to see in 2025 and beyond.
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Restructuring Plans Trend Report
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News analysis pieces
(In order of deal value)
KKR outbids Advent to clinch Spectris in £4bn takeover deal
Aviva acquires Direct Line to dominate the UK Insurance Market
DoorDash delivers a £2.9bn takeaway bid for Deliveroo
BWS eyes pension goldmine with a £2.4bn Just Group takeover bid
Permira secures JTC £2.3bn offer approval amid competitive bidding
Corpay accelerates expansion with £1.8bn Alpha offer
Another one bites the dust—Alphawave set to be delisted from the LSE in landmark £1.78bn deal
Assura agrees to £1.6bn cash offer from KKR-Stonepeak duo
Inside American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings cash and share offer for Dowlais
Going for gold—DPM to acquire Adriatic in £948m deal
SolGold to be acquired by largest shareholder Jiangxi Copper in £867m cash deal
Twinvestment—Apax Partners takes Apax Global private in a £795m deal
Unite targets strongly projected UK student boom with £723m Empiric acquisition
Macquarie and BCI bet on circular economy with £707m Renewi takeover
Urban Logistics to be acquired by LondonMetric Property
BasePoint’s £543m acquisition of IPF marks the final deal of 2025
Pennon Group plc announces £490m rights issue to fuel infrastructure investment
BBOX triumphs over Blackstone-led consortium in a battle for Warehouse REIT
Sixth time’s the charm? Blackstone pushes forward to acquire Warehouse following revised bid
US-based CareTrust set to acquire CRT plc in £448m deal
Mitie doubles down on compliance with £366m swoop on Marlowe
From Public to private: Unlocking market potential for Alliance Pharma
Long Path seeks to end seven-year 12% stake with £339.5m bid for Idox
TT Electronics draws Swiss interest as Cicor outbids rivalries in £287m surprise move
WSP secures £281m takeover of Ricardo plc: Investors cheer, but integration looms
US private equity firm makes a £263m cash offer for De La Rue
Wood Group accepts Sidara’s £216m offer after year-long pursuit
Foresight outbids Drax in £209.9m acquisition of Harmony Energy Income Trust
Laumann’s acquisition of Epwin marks first construction takeover deal in 2025
Regent seeks full control of Inspired through a cash offer for remaining stake of Inspired
UAE based Esyasoft to acquire Good Energy in £99m deal
A new vision for Inspecs under the watchful eye of the Consortium
Science in Sports scores £82.3m offer from bd-capital
DBAY and Founders reclaim Anexo by taking it private in £71m deal
HPE to acquire Frenkel, reshaping the PI and CN financial services market
Pollen Street Capital seeks full Kingswood takeover with 89% ownership
LondonMetric to acquire Highcroft in £43.8m all-share deal
Drilling deep—Viaro Energy fuels growth in Southern North Sea with Deltic buyout
Checkit’s all-share merger with Crimson Tide
Walker Crips to be acquired by longstanding shareholder Phillip Brokerage in a £6m deal
Xtellus' strategic move unlocks value in Serinus with a £5.1m cash acquisition
IFX (UK) Ltd. makes swift move with an offer for Argentex Group plc
Report written and produced by Lexis+® Market Insights
With thanks to our valued contributors
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Simon Allport, Partner in the International Corporate Group, Bird & Bird LLP |
Simon is a Partner in Bird & Bird’s international corporate group, based in London. He advises on a wide range of public and private M&A transactions and equity capital markets transactions. Simon has an intimate knowledge of the UK’s Takeover Code, having been seconded to the Takeover Panel earlier in his career and has advised numerous clients in a variety of sectors over the years on both hostile and recommended deals. Simon also advises both corporates and financial advisers on a wide range of general corporate, company law and regulatory matters across the financial services, aviation, life sciences and media sectors. Simon is consistently ranked as a leading individual for Corporate Finance work by Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500. |
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Tom Brassington, Senior Partner in the Corporate & Finance Practice Group, Hogan Lovells |
Tom is a Senior Partner in Hogan Lovells' London Corporate & Finance practice group. He is ranked in Chambers Global for Corporate/M&A, with his expertise in international and cross-border M&A highlighted in particular. He has experience across a wide variety of work including public and private M&A, joint ventures, restructurings, private equity and equity capital markets. Whilst Tom is a generalist M&A practitioner, he regularly acts for clients in the Life Sciences and Technology, Media & Telecoms sectors. Tom is based in London but has also practiced in both Dubai and Hong Kong. |
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Edward Davies, Freelance Consultant |
Ed is a corporate knowledge lawyer, legal training consultant and content writer with significant experience across several areas of corporate law, governance, and financial regulation. He has held posts with LexisNexis, Practical Law, the FCA and BPP University. In a freelance capacity Ed has many years of experience as a training consultant, report writer and AI content advisor with a particular interest in corporate regulatory compliance, corporate governance and broader compliance matters. |
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Giles Distin, Partner in the Corporate Finance Team, Addleshaw Goddard LLP |
Giles is a Partner in the Corporate Finance team at Addleshaw Goddard. He is an expert in advising on UK securities regulation and listed company transactions, including takeovers and other regulated M&A transactions, IPOs, reverse takeovers and public equity fundraisings involving companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. Giles was seconded for two years to the Takeover Panel and is one of a select number of lawyers in the UK with cutting edge experience of takeovers gained both in private practice and at the competent authority for regulating takeovers and mergers. |
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Nicola Evans, Senior Partner in the Corporate & Finance Practice Group, Hogan Lovells |
Nicola is a Senior Partner in the London Corporate & Finance practice of Hogan Lovells. Nicola’s broad experience is international and extends to corporate transactions, domestic and cross-border M&A, joint ventures, the Takeover Code, disclosure and governance issues, securities law and the Listing Rules as well as secondary capital raising and restructurings. Nicola is leader of Hogan Lovells’ Insurance Sector, the first woman in the firm to be appointed to this role. |
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Iain Fenn, Corporate Partner, Linklaters LLP |
Iain advises London listed and international companies on their most significant issues including public and private M&A, corporate restructurings and public offerings. He has acted as lead counsel to clients on many of the market’s most significant public company transactions in a career of over 30 years, including hostile public offers and many large and complex demergers. As well as an in depth knowledge of the UK public offer regime, Iain’s experience includes public transactions in all European jurisdictions, North America, the Middle East and Asia. Iain also regularly advises the boards of a number of London listed companies on strategic and governance issues and has considerable experience in activist as well as defence situations. Clients report that they ‘benefit from his insight and ability to take a view on topics as they come up’ and that ‘his gravitas and experience give us confidence.’ Iain’s expertise spans many sectors. |
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James Fletcher, Partner in the Corporate Practice Group, Ashurst LLP |
James is a Partner in Ashurst's corporate practice. He specialises in public and private M&A, equity capital markets transactions, and corporate governance work. |
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Jonathan Ford, Partner in the Antitrust & Foreign Investment Group, Linklaters LLP |
Jonathan is a Partner in Linklaters' antitrust & foreign investment group and has over a decade of experience working on a broad range of EU & UK competition law issues. Jonathan has particular specialism in complex UK mergers, having spent six months on secondment to the CMA, gaining valuable knowledge of top level decision makers and internal processes. He has experience across a range of sectors but is a particular expert in pharma, fintech & tech markets as well as having deep regulatory expertise, advising in relation to the price controls (and appeals) in the water and gas distribution sectors. Jonathan advised Quantile on the acquisition by the London Stock Exchange group, which included a rare CMA UK Phase 2 unconditional clearance, Vistry plc on its merger with Countryside plc as well as advising Press Association Holdings in relation to the sale of the Telegraph and the Spectator. Clients have described him as ‘very responsive and a pleasure to work with – a very strong talent’. |
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Matthew Hearn, Partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP |
Matthew is a partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group of Paul, Weiss. Matthew advises clients on sophisticated domestic and cross-border corporate transactions, with a focus on public takeovers across a broad range of industries. Matthew’s public takeovers practice encompasses representing both bidders and target companies, including international and UK entities, in recommended, hostile and competitive situations. He also co-manages the firm’s UK Public M&A practice and is a member of the City of London Law Society’s Takeovers Working Group. Matthew is recognised as an 'Up and Coming' Partner and Notable Practitioner for Corporate/M&A: 800m+ by Chambers UK 2025, and a Key Lawyer in UK Legal 500 2024 for M&A: Upper Mid-Market and Premium Deals. Matt is lauded for his technical expertise, ability to guide clients through difficult issues, detailed approach and dedication. |
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David Holdsworth, Partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP |
David is a partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group of Paul, Weiss, who advises on take-private and complex private equity and transactions. Some of his sponsor clients have included TDR Capital, Blackstone, Thoma Bravo, I Squared Capital, Advent International and TA Associates. Prior to joining Paul, Weiss, David served as partner and general counsel at TDR Capital, where he was deeply involved in all aspects of the business, developing a unique understanding of the day-to-day operations of a multibillion-dollar asset manager. Prior to this, he was a senior corporate partner in private practice with deep experience in private equity and sponsor backed public M&A. David has been recognized as a leading lawyer in Chambers UK and as 'Highly Regarded' by IFLR1000. |
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Jade Jack, Senior Adviser in the Corporate Practice Group, Ashurst LLP |
Jade is a Senior Adviser in Ashurst's corporate practice. She is an experienced corporate financier who supports Ashurst's corporate team providing specialist public company advice. Jade has extensive public company offer experience and was seconded to the UK Takeover Panel from 2011 to 2013. |
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Nicole Kar, Partner and Global Co-Chair of the Antitrust Practice, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP |
Nicole is Global Co-Chair of Paul, Weiss’ Antitrust Practice. She has led on over 40 significant merger and competition investigations in her over 20 years of European competition experience. She has extensive experience in advising on a wide range of regulatory and competition law issues in addition to maintaining a busy investigations and litigation practice. She has expertise in antitrust and regulatory issues spanning tech, financial services, retail, mining and healthcare sectors. Nicole was specialist adviser on foreign investment screening to both the Department for Business and Trade National Security Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee of the UK Parliament . Nicole is ranked in Tier 1 of Chambers and peers and clients alike hold her in high regard as a top regulatory lawyer. She attracts particular attention for her work on high-profile Phase II domestic merger control investigations. Clients describe her as having ‘her finger on the pulse in terms of what is going on in the competition law world,’ being ‘to the point, really on it and very good with clients’. |
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Alfred King, Senior Knowledge Lawyer, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP |
Alfred is a senior knowledge lawyer in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group of Paul, Weiss. He supports the firm’s UK Public M&A practice and is a member of the City of London Law Society’s Takeovers Working Group. |
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Tom Mercer, Partner and Head of Public Company EMEA, Ashurst LLP |
Tom is the Head of Public Company EMEA at Ashurst. He advises on a range of M&A, corporate finance and governance matters with particular expertise in public company takeovers and mergers. He was secretary to the UK Takeover Panel from 2011 to 2013 and head of Ashurst's corporate transactions practice in London from 2016 to 2018. |
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Max Mittasch, Partner, Macfarlanes LLP |
Max has a broad corporate practice, with a particular focus on advising on UK public takeovers, and between 2020-2022 he was seconded to the UK Takeover Panel. In addition to his focus on public M&A, Max advises clients on a wide variety of transactions, including equity capital markets, private M&A and group reorganisations. He has experience advising on large and complex work, as well as acting on mid-market mandates, and he operates across a range of sectors. Max has previously undertaken secondments at an investment bank and a leading French law firm. |
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Lauren O'Brien, Partner, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP |
Lauren is a partner in the Litigation Department and a member of the Antitrust Practice Group. Lauren advises leading global businesses on a wide range of complex and high-impact matters related to antitrust, merger control, foreign direct investment, and consumer law. |
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Nick O’Donnell, Partner in the International Corporate Group, Bird & Bird LLP |
Nick is a Partner in Bird & Bird’s international corporate group, based in London. He has more than 20 years’ experience advising on a range of corporate finance transactions including takeovers, private M&A, joint ventures and equity capital markets, as well as on ESG challenges and opportunities. Nick has previously been based in Abu Dhabi and New York and acts for a broad international mix of US, European and Gulf-based corporates and private equity, as well as FTSE clients. He covers a range of sectors, with a particular focus on technology and consumer. He has spent time on secondment with a range of investment banks and investors including Goldman Sachs, Macquarie and Morgan Stanley. He has been a regular commentator in the media, including on CNBC and in The Financial Times. |
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Lucy Robson, Partner in the Corporate Finance Team, Addleshaw Goddard LLP |
Lucy is a Partner in Addleshaw Goddard's corporate finance team, specialising in public M&A and advising Main Market and AIM listed companies on their key strategic transactions. Lucy acts for a wide range of UK and overseas bidders and targets, as well as financial advisers. |
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Tom Rose, Partner, Macfarlanes LLP |
Tom advises on all aspects of corporate transactions, specialising in complex cross-border M&A. His practice encompasses public and private acquisitions and disposals, carve-outs, private capital, ECM situations and advisory mandates. Tom is recognised in Chambers & Partners and in The Legal 500 for UK premium public and private M&A. |
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Patrick Sarch, Partner in the Global M&A and Corporate Practice Group and Head of UK Public M&A Practice, White & Case LLP |
Patrick is a Partner in White & Case's global M&A and Corporate practice team based in London and leads their UK Public M&A practice. He has almost 30 years' experience advising clients on corporate finance, domestic, and cross-border public company M&A (with extensive experience in competitive and hostile situations), innovative structuring, the Takeover Code, disclosure issues, securities law and the Listing Rules, as well as secondary issues and capital restructuring. In recent years, he has developed a strong 'activism' practice, advising both companies and activist shareholders on strategic, ESG and M&A-related campaigns and disputes. |
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Dan Schuster-Woldan, Partner and Head of European Public M&A, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP |
Dan is a partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group of Paul, Weiss and head of its European Public M&A practice. Dan advises on a variety of public and private M&A and equity capital market transactions, including carveouts, spin-offs, joint ventures, IPOs, secondary capital raises and corporate restructurings. Dan has extensive cross-border transaction expertise, advising both corporate and private equity clients on projects across Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa. Dan’s strategic approach and deep industry knowledge, particularly in the insurance and wider financial services sectors, make him a trusted advisor to clients undertaking their most critical and challenging transactions. He is recognized by Chambers UK in Insurance: Non-contentious and The Legal 500 UK as a Leading Individual for M&A: Upper Mid-Market and Premium Deals and Insurance: Corporate and Regulatory. |
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Daniel Simons, Senior Partner in the Corporate & Finance Practice, Hogan Lovells |
Daniel is a Senior Partner in the London Corporate & Finance practice at Hogan Lovells and was recently named in The Lawyer’s 'Hot 100' list of top lawyers working in the UK. He focuses his practice on corporate finance transactions, in particular on domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions and equity capital markets. Daniel also has particular focus on public M&A transactions, including P2Ps, and he has advised numerous companies, private equity houses and financial institutions in the context of these transactions. |
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Allan Taylor, Partner and Co-Head of EMEA Corporate Practice, White & Case LLP |
Allan Taylor is a Partner in our global M&A and Corporate practice based in London and Co-Head of the EMEA Corporate practice. Allan specialises in complex international transactions and has extensive experience leading cross-border, multi-disciplinary teams to deliver innovative solutions tailored to clients’ business needs. He advises public and private companies, financial institutions, and international clients across a range of matters including mergers and acquisitions, equity capital markets, joint ventures, restructurings, and UK corporate governance. Allan has particular expertise in the natural resources sector, including oil and gas, mining, and metals, and regularly advises issuers and underwriters on IPOs and dual listings. |
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Sonica Tolani, Partner in the Global M&A and Corporate Practice Group, White & Case LLP |
Sonica is a Partner in White & Case’s global M&A and Corporate practice based in London. Sonica has extensive experience in advising corporate clients, private equity, hedge funds and investment banks on international public M&A transactions, primary and secondary equity raisings and sell-downs, and listed company advisory and corporate governance matters. Sonica has particular expertise in UK Public M&A transactions. |
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Simon Wood, Partner in the Corporate Finance Team, Addleshaw Goddard LLP |
Simon is a corporate finance Partner at Addleshaw Goddard and advises listed companies on the full range of corporate finance transactions. He has particular expertise in public M&A, having previously spent a two-year secondment as Secretary to the Takeover Panel. |
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Alex Woodfield Partner, White & Case LLP |
Alex Woodfield is a partner in White & Case’s global M&A and Corporate practice based in London. He advises on a wide range of UK, European and other cross-border transactional and advisory work, with a focus on M&A, private equity and real estate investment. Alex has also advised on many high-profile engagements between activist investors and UK public-listed companies. |

