BDGS Associés

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David Andréani

Partner focusing on French and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, reorganisations and joint ventures, involving both listed and unlisted companies. David Andréani has recently advised Edizione on its partnership with 21 Invest and Tages regarding the creation of 21 Next ; Butler Industries on the acquisition of a majority stake in Moma group; Téthys Invest on its investment in Septeo Group; La Banque Postale on the sale of KissKissBankBank; Merit France, the Saadé family holding company, on the acquisition of a 20% stake in Pathé; Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations on the sale of its stake in Transdev Group to Rethmann France; Crédit Agricole Assurances (Predica) on two real estate partnerships with Clariane; TotalEnergies on its acquisition of Total Eren and the subsequent merger between Total Eren and TotalEnergies Renewables; CMA CGM on the acquisition of La Tribune; Peugeot Invest on its participation in the simplified tender offer for Rothschild & Co; ENGIE on the sale of ENGIE Home Services to Latour Capital, the sale of Equans to Bouygues, the sale of its stake in Suez to Veolia, and the sale of its subsidiary GDF International’s majority stake in ENGIE EPS to Taiwan Cement Corporation and the subsequent mandatory public offer; La Banque Postale on its acquisition of a 58% stake in CNP Assurances and its public offer and squeeze out of the remaining shares of CNP Assurances; Media-Participations on the creation of a joint venture with Group Michelin and its acquisition of La Martinière Groupe; Bpifrance on its sale of a 10% stake in Insignis and its reinvestment alongside Cinven; Safran on its public offer for Zodiac Aerospace and EDF on its partnership with Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations regarding RTE.

François Baylion

Partner focusing on corporate governance and transactions involving listed companies, including takeovers and equity capital markets transactions. He has particular experience of transactions in the energy, infrastructure and telecoms sectors. He has recently represented Société M.B.D., the family controlling shareholder of BIC, on the reorganisation of the family governance and the control structure with respect to BIC; Crédit Agricole Assurances (Predica) on the sale of its stake in La Française des Jeux (FDJ), as reference shareholder on the €1.5 billion refinancing plan adopted by Clariane, on its participation in a €850 million Series C capital injection in Verkor, a company specialized in EV batteries, on the investment by GIC, the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund, in Vauban Infra Fibre, France’s largest independent digital infrastructure platform, alongside several funds managed by Vauban Infrastructure Partners, on its acquisition of a 30% stake in Innergex France, and on the reorganisation by Group Crédit Agricole of its retirement business with the creation of Crédit Agricole Assurance Retraite.

Antoine Bonnasse

Partner specializing in complex mergers and acquisitions (listed and unlisted companies), corporate and financial engineering, industrial restructurings, securities law, private equity and M&A litigation. Antoine Bonnasse has recently represented L’Oréal on the acquisition of Kering Beauté; Merit France on its acquisition of a minority stake in Carrefour; Groupe ADIT on its 5th LBO, marked by the entry of a pool of new investors (UI, Covea, MACSF, Florac, Impala, Stags, Weinberg CP and Isalt) alongside existing investors (Sagard, Parquest, Bpifrance and Amundi); Louis Dreyfus Armateurs and the Louis Dreyfus family on the sale of a majority stake in Louis Dreyfus Armateurs to InfraVia; Safran and Safran Ceramics on the sale by Safran Ceramics of its stake in Roxel; Icade on the sale of its stake in Icade Santé to Primonial REIM; the shareholders of Cedys & Co, main shareholder of Evolis, and Evolis on the acquisition by HID Global of all shares of Evolis and the subsequent simplified public tender offer by HID Global for the remaining shares of Evolis; Sopra Steria and Sopra GMT on the sale by Sopra Steria to Axway of Sopra Banking Software and the sale by Sopra Steria to Sopra GMT of a block of Axway shares and Sopra Steria on its public tender offer for CS Group; Butler Industries on the acquisition of a majority stake in MOMA group; Publicis on its joint venture with Carrefour in the retail media sector; Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC) on the creation of "New Suez" by a consortium composed of Meridiam, Global Infrastructure Partners and CDC; Bouygues Telecom on certain joint ventures; the Agence des Participations de l'Etat on the recapitalisation of Air France-KLM; and Bpifrance on the reorganisation of the shareholding of Paprec.

Partner in BDGS Associés’ Competition and Regulatory practice. Florian Bosser advises French and foreign companies across all areas of French and EU competition law, in particular in the fields of State aid and merger control. He also handles complex regulatory matters, notably in the following sectors: transport, banking, energy, and media and assists his clients with foreign direct investment (FDI) control procedures, in France and in other jurisdictions. He has recently advised L’Oréal on the acquisition of Kering Beauté; the ADIT Group on the reorganization of its shareholding structure allowing the entry of new financial investors; and several investment funds and international clients on FDI matters in connection with the acquisition of sensitive targets in France. He has recently been involved in several banking prudential regulation matters, including litigation.

Senior associate advising debtors, shareholders, investors and creditors on all aspects of company restructuring both as part of out-of-court processes or more formal insolvency proceedings (financial, operational or industrial restructurings, LBO restructurings, distressed M&A transactions, asset deals in insolvency, including prepackaged sale plans, related issues and litigation). Recent work on public matters includes advising: Crédit Agricole Assurances in its capacity as shareholder of Clariane as part of the €1.5 billion plan to strengthen its financial structure; Peugeot Motocyles for the take-over of a manufacturer of electric motorbikes as part of a prepack sale plan; Canal + on the acquisition of OCS and Orange Studios; and Crédit Agricole Assurances in its capacity as shareholder of Comexposium as part of the execution of its safeguard plan having restructured its financial indebtedness amounting to €600m. Laurène has also been involved in a number of confidential strategic matters.

Partner advising distressed companies, their boards, their shareholders, their creditors and industrial or financial investors on debt restructurings, distressed M&A, out-of-court negotiations and insolvency proceedings. Recent work includes advising: Crédit Agricole Assurance on the restructuring, through a safeguard plan, of €600 million of debt held by Comexposium, a company co-controlled by Predica and the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and on the adoption by Clariane of a plan to strengthen its financial structure amounting to €1.5 billion with the support of Predica as a reference shareholder; and Groupe Canal+ on the acquisition from Orange of the OCS pay-TV package and its film and series co-production subsidiary, Orange Studio.

Partner focusing on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and capital market transactions, in particular in a cross-border context. She also represents clients in their corporate and commercial disputes and international arbitration. Hannah Cobbett is a native speaker of English and is fluent in French and Mandarin Chinese. Hannah Cobbett has recently advised Euricom on its acquisition of Ebly from Mars and Axereal Participations; Diageo on its joint venture with LVMH in Moët Hennessy, its worldwide distribution arrangements with Moët Hennessy and its delisting from Euronext Paris; Coty on its dual listing on Euronext Paris and issuance of 33 million shares via a public offering in the United States and a private placement reserved for qualified investors in the EEA; Thales on the sale of its Ground Transportation Systems (GTS) to Hitachi Rail; Crédit Agricole Assurances (Predica) on its acquisition in consortium with Vauban Infrastructure Partners of 45% of Bluevia from Telefónica, on its acquisition in consortium with ENGIE of Eolia Renovables, one of the largest independent renewable energy producers in Spain from Alberta Investment Management Corporation; Richemont on its partnership with Alber Elbaz for the creation of a joint venture, AZfashion; and Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) as reference shareholder of Lagardère.

Yaëlle Cohen heads BDGS Associes’ Financing practice, which she created in 2021. She advises investment funds, companies, private debt funds and financial institutions on complex bank or bond financing in the context of domestic and cross-border corporate transactions, LBOs and project financing. She also supports companies in difficulty and their shareholders with financial restructuring operations. She has carried out a number of high-profile financing transactions, including most recently the sale by Icade of its stake in Icade Santé and the portfolio of assets held by Icade Healthcare Europe to Primonial REIM; the acquisition of ‘New Suez’ by a consortium comprising Meridiam, Global Infrastructure Partners and Groupe CDC, formed from assets acquired from Veolia and Suez in the context of Veolia's takeover bid for Suez; the roll-out of the national fibre-optic network in France by Bouygues Telecom through joint ventures with Phoenix Tower International, Cellnex and Vauban Infrastructure Partners; Sagard's acquisition of a majority stake in ADIT; ADIT's acquisition of a controlling stake in Défense Conseil International from the French government and Sofema; the refinancing of HysetCo's debt, in particular for the deployment of hydrogen refuelling stations for taxi fleets; and the first project financing for WAAT, for the deployment of refuelling stations for electric vehicles in condominiums.

Florian Dessailt

Partner advising and representing companies and their senior executives before French commercial and civil courts, as well as before arbitral tribunals. Florian Dessault's practice focuses in particular on complex business litigation (shareholder disputes, post-acquisition litigation, contractual disputes), and he has developed recognised expertise in handling sensitive disputes involving regulatory or competition law issues.

Youssef Djehane

Partner focusing on matters concerning listed companies, including listed companies, including takeovers, capital restructurings, equity capital markets transactions, corporate governance matters and shareholder disputes. He has recently represented Société M.B.D., the family controlling shareholder of BIC, on the reorganisation of the family governance and the control structure with respect to BIC; the supervisory board of Europcar Mobility Group on governance issues; Crédit Agricole Assurances (Predica) as reference shareholder on the €1.5 billion refinancing plan adopted by Clariane and the financial restructuring of the Comexposium Group; Diageo on its joint venture with LVMH in Moët Hennessy, its distribution arrangements with Moët Hennessy and its delisting from Euronext Paris; and Qatar Investment Authority as reference shareholder of Lagardère.

Jérôme du Chazaud

Partner focusing on mergers and acquisitions and restructurings of both listed and unlisted companies, in particular in the field of telecom infrastructure. Jérôme du Chazaud has recently advised L'Oréal on its acquisition of Kering Beauté; Groupe ADIT on its 5th LBO, marked by the entry of a pool of new investors (UI, Covea, MACSF, Florac, Impala, Stags, Weinberg CP and Isalt) alongside existing investors (Sagard, Parquest, Bpifrance and Amundi), as well as on the acquisition of a majority stake in Défense Conseil International (DCI) from the French State and Sofema; Bouygues Telecom on the sale to Phoenix Tower International of Infracos, a joint venture held by SFR and Bouygues Telecom, as well as on several joint ventures and partnerships (with Cellnex, Phoenix Tower International and Vauban Infrastructure Partners) aimed at financing the deployment of its mobile and fibre network; Bpifrance on its investment in Biogaran alongside BC Partners; French Tech Souveraineté on its acquisitions of stakes in EuroAPI, in the context of its IPO, and in Biose Industries; Eiffel Investment Group and Bpifrance on an hybrid financing for the benefit of Evergaz as well as on the acquisition of 3E Biogas; ADEME Investissement on its investment in Ecotitanium as well as in Arvenne Group, in the context of its IPO; Sopra Steria on its public tender offer for CS Group; Publicis on its joint venture with Carrefour in the retail media sector; Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC) on the creation of "New Suez" by a consortium composed of Meridiam, Global Infrastructure Partners and CDC; and the Agence des Participations de l'Etat on the recapitalisation of Air France-KLM.

Partner specialising in all areas of French and EU competition law, including anticompetitive practices (cartels and abuse of dominant position), complex merger control proceedings, foreign subsidies control (FSR), follow-on damages actions, and distribution law, across a wide range of industries. He regularly represents clients before French and European courts and competition authorities. He has recently advised Meta on its defense against a complaint for abuse of dominant position before the French Competition Authority, both during the interim measures phase and on the merits; Carrefour on its dispute with Coopérative U regarding the dissolution of their joint purchasing alliance; CMA CGM on a follow-on damages action against Google in relation to its anticompetitive practices; and Publicis and its subsidiary Metrobus on an investigation by the French Competition Authority into alleged collusion in the outdoor advertising sector. He also regularly advises Crédit Agricole Assurances (Predica), La Banque Postale, Butler Industries and OpenGate Capital on their acquisitions, including merger control and FSR proceedings before the French Competition Authority and the European Commission.

Lucile Gaillard

Partner specialising in mergers and acquisitions, in particular corporate restructurings and spin-offs of both listed and unlisted entities as well as joint ventures. She has notably undertaken restructurings of groups in the public sector and of groups with a specific legal status. She also advises founding shareholders in family-owned business groups. She has recently advised Sopra Steria and Sopra GMT on a global transaction consisting in the sale of Sopra Banking Software to Axway and the sale by Sopra Steria to Sopra GMT of a stake in Axway; one of the founding shareholders of SPHERE on the sale of a majority stake to Hivest Capital Partners; SNCF on its recapitalisation via a €4 billion share capital increase and on the reorganisation of Fret SNCF and Rail Logistics Europe following the opening by the European Commission in January 2023 of formal proceedings regarding French support measures for Fret SNCF; La Banque Postale on its acquisition of a 58% stake in CNP Assurances and its public offer and squeeze out of the remaining shares of CNP Assurances; Financière LOV on the regulatory aspects of the combination of its subsidiary FL Entertainment with Pegasus Entrepreneurial Acquisition Company Europe B.V; the French State (Agence des Participations de l’État and Direction Générale du Trésor) on the reorganisation of Bpifrance; and Aéroports de Paris on the restructuring of its share capital and the regulatory consequences of its privatisation.

François Gordon

Partner advising French and international companies on all aspects of competition law: merger control, anticompetitive agreements, abuse of dominant position, private enforcement, State aid and distribution law. His practice encompasses counselling as well as litigation before the European and French competition authorities and courts across an array of economic sectors, including regulated industries. He also assists clients on the EU’s foreign subsidies control procedures (FSR) and foreign direct investment reviews (FDI) in France and other jurisdictions. He has recently advised Carrefour on its acquisitions of Cora/Match and Casino stores and Séché Environnement on the competition law aspects of its acquisition of Groupe Flamme, a company active in the waste management sector. He has also recently represented a company involved in the first case before the French Competition Authority in which criminal and competition proceedings were conducted in parallel, raising significant due process issues. François regularly acts in the energy sector and has also advised several investment funds on merger control and FDI filings for various acquisitions.

Antoine Gosset-Grainville

Partner specialising in all aspects of French and EU competition law with a specific focus on state aid, complex merger control and antitrust litigation. Advises French and international clients in a broad range of sectors, including regulated industries such as transport, telecom, and financial services. He has recently advised CMA CGM on mergers, including Bolloré Logistics and Altice Media, as well as on various antitrust and regulatory issues; Carrefour on mergers, including the acquisition of its competitor Cora/Match; ENGIE on the in-depth state aid investigation opened by the European Commission in 2024 concerning the 10-year extension of the operation of two Belgian nuclear reactors; the Fédération du Commerce et de la Distribution before the French Competition Authority in the Bisphénol A case, recently obtaining its total exoneration; the French State on the recapitalisation of Air France-KLM, as well as Corsair, the La Poste Group, SNCF and various public operators on State aid issues, notably in the context of the Covid-19 crisis. He also represents several key French banks in litigation before the General Court and the Court of Justice of the EU against a series of decisions by the ECB and the Single Resolution Board.

Guillaume Jolly

Partner specialising in French and international tax law with intensive experience in advising on the tax aspects of corporate transactions (mergers and acquisitions, private equity transactions and corporate restructurings), real estate transactions (including listed real estate companies or REITs) and management packages. He also advises private clients, particularly corporate executives, on their personal tax situations. He has recently advised L’Oréal on the acquisition of Kering Beauté; the ADIT Group on the reorganization of its shareholding structure allowing the entry of new financial investors; Bouygues Telecom on the sale of Infracos, a joint venture formed by SFR and Bouygues Telecom, to Phoenix Tower International; Butler Industries on the acquisition of a majority stake in the MOMA Group; CMA Media on the acquisition of Chérie HD, publisher of the television service “Chérie 25”; Merit France, the Saadé family holding company, on the acquisition of a 20% stake in Pathé; Société M.B.D., the family controlling shareholder of BIC, on the reorganisation of the family governance and the control structure of BIC; Crédit Agricole Assurances (Predica) on the acquisition of a minority stake in the Proxiserve Group from Vauban Infrastructure; and Euricom on its acquisition of Ebly from Mars and Axereal Participations.

Kyum Lee is head of BDGS Associés’ Dispute Resolution practice, which he created in 2018. Kyum’s practice focuses on complex commercial, mergers and acquisitions, securities, bankruptcy and antitrust disputes. He also handles arbitration and white-collar criminal matters. He represents clients in diverse industries, including banks and financial institutions, media companies and industrial firms.

Partner specialising in public and private mergers and acquisitions focusing on transactions involving listed companies (takeovers, public offers) and cross-border transactions. He also advises on shareholder disputes and, more generally, securities law. Marc Loy has recently represented Merit France, the Saadé family holding company, on the acquisition of a 20% stake in Pathé; CMA CGM on its acquisition of La Tribune; Téthys Invest on its investment in Septeo Group; Maurel family on the tender offer for Rothschild & Co.; ENGIE on the sale of ENGIE Home Services to Latour Capital, the sale of Equans to Bouygues, the sale of its stake in Suez to Veolia, and the sale of its subsidiary GDF International’s majority stake in ENGIE EPS to Taiwan Cement Corporation and the subsequent mandatory public offer; La Banque Postale on its acquisition of a 58% stake in CNP Assurances and its public offer and squeeze out of the remaining shares of CNP Assurances; Media-Participations on its acquisition of La Martinière Groupe; TotalEnergies on its acquisition of Total Eren; EDF on its partnership with Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations regarding Réseau de Transport d’Electricité; and Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel on its merger with Rothschild & Co.

Partner specialising in securities law as well as public and private M&A transactions. He advises leading industrial groups and institutional investors on complex cross-border transactions, and major investment funds on a large number of transactions, including LBOs, takeover offers, and PtoPs. Thomas Méli has recently represented Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations on the sale of its stake in Transdev Group to Rethmann France; Merit France on the acquisition of two luxury hotels located in Saint-Tropez (France); Solabia on the acquisition of a majority stake in PolymerExpert; Icade on the sale of its stake in a portfolio of healthcare assets in Italy to BNP Paribas REIM and the sale of its stake in Icade Santé to Primonial REIM; ENGIE on the sale of ENGIE Home Services to Latour Capital, the sale of Equans to Bouygues and the sale of its stake in Suez to Veolia; Thales on the sale of its Ground Transportation Systems (GTS) to Hitachi Rail; OpenGate Capital on the sale of Bois & Matériaux to Chausson Group, the sale of Axter to IKO Group (Canada), the sale of Skydôme to the Kingspan Group (Ireland), and the acquisition of Umicore’s zinc chemicals business; KKR & Co. Inc. on the 100 million dollar Series C funding round of Ornikar; Goldman Sachs PE on the 70 million dollar Series C funding round of LumApps; and Safran on its public offer for Zodiac Aerospace.

Jean-Emmanuel Skovron

Partner specialising in investments and transactions involving the French State and concerning the public sector (listed or unlisted companies). Through this practice, he has developed an in-depth understanding of the banking and infrastructure sectors. He has recently represented CMA CGM on the acquisition of Chérie HD, publisher of the television service “Chérie 25”; CMA CGM and Merit France on the structuring and regulatory implications of their acquisition from Altice France of Altice Media; La Banque Postale on its acquisition of a 58% stake in CNP Assurances and its public offer and squeeze out of the remaining shares of CNP Assurances; SNCF on its recapitalisation via a €4 billion share capital increase; the French State (Agence des Participations de l’État and Direction Générale du Trésor) on the reorganisation of Bpifrance; Paprec on the takeover of Dalkia Wastenergy; Covéa on the sale of its 20% stake in Caser Seguros to Helvetia; Aéroports de Paris on the restructuring of its share capital and the regulatory consequences of its privatisation; and EDF on its partnership with Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations regarding RTE.

Maria Trabucchi

Partner specialising in French and EU competition law, advising on complex merger control procedures, cartel and abuse of dominance investigations, antitrust litigation and follow on damages claims before the European and French competition authorities and courts with a particular focus on sectors such as aerospace, energy, financial services, food and consumer goods, and retail. She has recently advised Safran on the merger control aspects of its acquisition of RTX's actuation business; Carrefour on several of its acquisitions, including that of its competitor Cora/Match; Thales on the sale of its Ground Transportation Systems (GTS) to Hitachi Rail; Meta on its defence against a complaint for abuse of a dominant position before the French competition authority, both during the interim measures procedure and the proceedings on the merits; the Alliance de la Presse d'Information Générale (APIG) before the French Competition Authority on the case of abuse of dominant position against Google in relation to neighbouring rights; several key French banks in litigation before the General Court and the Court of Justice of the EU against a series of decisions by the ECB and the Single Resolution Board; the Fédération du Commerce et de la Distribution before the French Competition Authority on the case of Bisphenol A, recently obtaining its total exoneration; and Campofrío on the ham and charcuterie cartel case before the French Competition Authority and then the Paris Court of Appeal.