The transaction, initially flagged to the market by NewRiver in June 2015, involved NewRiver migrating to the UK via a court sanctioned scheme of arrangement under Guernsey Law and subsequent application for admission to the main market segment of the London Stock Exchange.
Previously AIM-quoted NewRiver, incorporated in Guernsey, is a leading property investor, asset manager and developer specializing in the UK retail sector and was listed on AIM in 2009. The current market capitalisation of NewRiver is in excess of £750m.
Partner John Rochester is leading the team advising NewRiver, assisted by corporate senior associate Alex Davies, and fellow partner Abel Lyall assisted by litigation senior associate Jamie Bookless. NewRiver is also being advised by Eversheds LLP in London.
John said: "We have acted for NewRiver since inception and we are pleased to be of assistance in respect of a transaction that represents a clear path forward to increased shareholder value".
Mourant Ozannes' corporate team is a leading practice known for acting on the most complex and demanding transactions, with a particularly strong reputation for corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and private equity. The corporate team is strongly supported by the Litigation team, which is consistently recognised as the leading litigation practice on the island.
Abel Lyall commented: "Our corporate and litigation teams worked together seamlessly to ensure successful delivery of the deal for NewRiver. We are proud to have been able to act on Guernsey's first cancellation scheme of arrangement."
The Royal Court of Guernsey sanctioned the scheme of arrangement on 17 August 2016 and NewRiver REIT plc was successfully admitted to the main market segment of the London Stock Exchange at 8:00am on 18 August 2016.
The team at Mourant Ozannes also recently acted for Japan Residential Investment Company Limited on its £152.6M takeover via Guernsey scheme of arrangement by entities controlled by Blackstone Real Estate Partners Asia and Blackstone Real Estate Partners VIII.