About Lennart Crain
Lennart Crain is a partner of the firm and co-heads the Corporate/M&A group. Lennart specialises in public and private M&A transactions, public company representation and complex negotiations. He regularly advises on public offers, buyouts, controlled auction sales, growth capital investments and complex disentanglements. Lennart has ample experience with transactions for private equity clients and other financial sponsors. He also acts for strategic parties and is well-versed across a broad range of sectors, including technology, media and software. He regularly leads multi-jurisdictional transactions, with or without a Dutch connection, and often works with leading international law firms on their multi-jurisdictional deals. Lawyers and insurers consult Lennart in the field of W&I insurance.
Lennart's financial acumen, gained during his MBA at Columbia Business School, enables him to translate financial aspects into deal strategy, negotiations and transaction documentation. Clients appreciate the combination of his helicopter view and attention to detail.
His work is recognized by the international legal directories Chambers & Partners (Global and Europe Guides), The Legal 500 (EMEA) and IFLR1000 in the fields of M&A and Private Equity, where his financial expertise is credited. Sources describe him as "efficient and creative", "customer-centric, very proactive", "brings parties together", "a pragmatic and experienced M&A lawyer who keeps his eye on the prize, prioritising what needs to be prioritised", “very responsive, commercial and solution oriented”, “good negotiator”, and “has deep knowledge of both legal and financial matters”.
By way of pro bono work, Lennart served in Kosovo, after the declaration of independence from Serbia, as visiting attorney for the Legal Unit with the International Civilian Office and EU Special Representative.
Recent mandates:
Public company advisory
- Advised a private investors group on their investment in the offeror that announced a recommended all-cash public takeover offer for B&S Group SA, listed on Euronext Amsterdam
- Advised a Euronext Amsterdam listed issuer on a reverse listing with a crypto-asset firm
- Advised a private equity firm on its recommended public cash-or-exchange offer and the potential delisting of Hydratec Industries, listed on Euronext Amsterdam
- Advised digital geo-data provider GeoJunxion on the sale of its entire business in a take-private by a private equity consortium, and delisting from Euronext Amsterdam
- Advised Marlin Equity Partners on their public take-private bid jointly with Altor for Meltwater (Dutch NV listed on Oslo Børs)
- Advised a potential interloper, backed by two US private equity funds, on its EUR 2 billion public offer for Euronext Amsterdam listed Intertrust
- Advised Euronext Amsterdam listed Neways on the unsolicited public offer by VDL and the subsequent, recommended, public offer by Infestos
- Advised Euronext Amsterdam listed Oranjewoud on its delisting and squeeze out of minority shareholders
Private equity
- Advised PE firm Scope Capital on the buyout of a Dutch ski and active wear company
- Advised EQT-backed SUSE on the acquisition of the full stack observability platform StackState
- Advised Borromin Capital on the Dutch and Belgian aspects of the sale of WATR Group to Castik Capital
- Advised Dutch PE firm AAC Capital on several mandates
- Advised Strategic Value Partners and Blantyre Capital on the Dutch aspects of the acquisition of OQ Chemicals, a producer of oxo chemicals
- The founding family and management in the buyout of Megadyne by Partners Group and roll-over into a combination with Ammeraal Beltech at a combined EV of €2bn
- Advised a PE firm on its acquisition of an iconic Dutch 5-star hotel
- Advised international PE firms such as Apollo, Blackstone and PAI on add-on acquisitions or Dutch law aspects of transactions
- Advised a Dutch PE firm on Dutch law aspects several platform acquisitions and controlled auctions
Financial services & strategic M&A
- Advised founders on the auction sale of a minority stake in their insurance - MGA to Söderberg & Partners from Sweden
- Advised Achmea, one of the largest Dutch insurers, on the acquisition of Blue Sky Group’s asset management, including the asset management of the three KLM pension funds and the Royal Philips pension fund
- Advised Maguerite-backed Jifmar Group on the acquisition of the Middle East fleet of workboats from Seacontractors
- Advised a PE firm’s exit from a financial services intermediary
- Advised a founder on the sale of an insurance - MGA
- Advised Nasdaq Stockholm listed Vitec Software Group on multiple software acquisitions
- Advised Euronext Paris listed fleet leasing company Ayvens on the acquisition of a portfolio from and commercial partnership with Volvo
- Advised EPICo², a Belgium based infrastructure investment fund, on a joint venture with Macquarie Capital for the construction of the largest stand-alone battery storage system in the Netherlands
- Advised Nasdaq Helsinki listed Aspo Plc and its division Telko on the acquisition of the industrial lubricants distribution businesses of Optimol in the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Luxembourg
- Advised Strategic Value Partners and Blantyre Capital on the acquisition of OQ Chemicals, a producer of oxo chemicals
- Advised Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), a global leader in renewable energy investments, on its joint bid with Vattenfall for the development of IJmuiden Ver Beta, the largest offshore wind farm in the Netherlands
- Advised a founder on the controlled auction sale of an infrastructure business to a UK/AMS listed purchaser
- Advised founders on the controlled auction sale of their EdTech business to a US-based unicorn
- Advised on the auction sale of NDC Media, the last major Dutch independent multimedia publisher, to Belgian Mediahuis
- Advised KL-listed IOI on its sale of a 70% stake in Loders Croklaan to NYSE-listed Bunge at an EV of $1.4bn