M&A at Hogan Lovells

Financial Institutions

In 2019, total deal value increased significantly in the financial institutions sector notwithstanding a slight decrease in total deal volume, as a result of big-ticket M&A by banks and other financial institutions seeking to leverage synergies.

Large banks continued to invest in FinTech start-ups, as asset-light and agile bank service providers remained popular recipients of FinTech funding and built momentum to challenge established brick and mortar operations.

Our Financial Institutions sector group released our annual Hogan Lovells FIS Horizons publication highlighting important sector developments, including the transition from LIBOR to risk-free reference rates, compliance requirements including AML and sanctions, diversity and culture, sustainable and impact finance, technology, and innovation.

We also designed and launched Hogan Lovells LIBOR Solutions, our award-winning alternative legal delivery tool for LIBOR transition and Hogan Lovells Regulatory, Compliance, and Investigation Solutions, our tool to help keep our clients apprised of potential regulatory, compliance and investigation risk, and solutions in the sector.

620+

Financial Institutions
lawyers

Band 1

FinTech – Legal UK
Chambers FinTech, 2019

In 2019, Hogan Lovells advised on the following
FIS transactions, among others:

Cardano

Cardano

We advised Cardano, a pensions risk and investment management specialist, on its acquisition of NOW: Pensions, the United Kingdom’s third-largest auto-enrollment provider, serving over 30,000 businesses and 1.7m pensions savers. With this acquisition, Cardano will manage over £25bn of assets and employ 350 people across its core markets in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. A team of lawyers in our London office led this transaction.

GE Capital

We advised GE Capital on its sale of Trade Payables Services, a leading supply chain financing platform, to MUFG Union Bank, a subsidiary of MUFG Americas Holdings Corporation. The Trade Payables Services platform supports relationships with GE suppliers worldwide. Upon closing of the transaction, MUFG Union Bank assumed management control of the systems and processes supporting the supply chain finance activities that GE Capital performs for GE. A team of lawyers in our Washington, D.C. office led this transaction, with support from our finance, intellectual property, and tax practices.

Opportunity International

We advised Opportunity International, a global microfinance nonprofit, on the sale of its 80 percent stake in Opportunity International Savings and Loans Limited, Ghana (OISL). OISL is a leading savings and loan institution in Ghana at the forefront of delivering transformational ﬁnancial services to clients who are marginalized, poor, and excluded from mainstream banking in Ghana. A team of lawyers in our London office led this deal, with support from our regulatory and tax practices.

State Bank Corp.

We advised State Bank Corp., the holding company for State Bank of Arizona and its divisions, on its sale to Glacier Bancorp, a Western U.S. regional bank holding company. The sale increases State Bank Corp.'s resources to serve clients and strengthens its commitment to build a community banking franchise in Arizona. The combined entity will operate as Foothills Bank and will have 15 full-service branches throughout Arizona. A team of lawyers in our Washington, D.C. office led this transaction.

“With significant experience acting for ... financial institutions, Hogan Lovells offers an impressive breadth of expertise on cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology, smart contracts and AI, among other areas of FinTech.”

Legal 500 USA, 2019

Financial Institutions market statistics as published in Hogan Lovells Deal Dynamics