BUCHAREST – RTPR Allen & Overy announces the closing of a new M&A deal. Cristi Pop sells Animax business to Rohatyn Group.

RTPR Allen & Overy has advised Pet Product’s shareholder, Cristian Pop, on the sale of the company to Rohatyn Group. Pet Product is the largest pet shop chain in Romania with 73 shops operating under the Animax brand.

The project team involved by RTPR Allen & Overy was coordinated by Costin Tărăcilă (Managing Partner), assisted by Alina Stăvaru (Counsel) and further included Evelin Grigore (Associate), Mihnea Radu (Junior Associate) and Cezara Popescu (Junior Associate).

Cristi Pop declared: “I invested in Animax time, energy and a lot of work to reach the point where it is today, and this new stage came naturally to allow the business to grow even more. Throughout the sale process I had the RTPR Allen & Overy team on my side and would like to thank them for their support and comfort. Being an entrepreneur with no transactional experience so far, it was crucial to have on my side a team of very experienced and commercial lawyers who guided me through what it was possible and what it was not possible to obtain in a deal. When I chose them I was told they were the best for M&A deals, but now I know for sure I had the best lawyers.”

“The sale of Animax is an example of successful business developed by a Romanian entrepreneur, we are happy to have advised Cristi Pop on this deal and we would like to thank him for this interesting mandate. We are proud of our fantastic M&A team which is constantly involved in the largest and most innovative projects on the market.”, Costin Taracila declared.

“When an entrepreneur decides it is time that the business to which he dedicated his whole life work to move to a new phase, it is always an emotional moment. It was an honour to advise our client in this extremely important moment for Animax business in all phases of the sale process, thank you for the honour of being part of this success story.”, Alina Stăvaru declared.

RTPR Allen & Overy’s corporate/M&A practice is ranked in the first tier by all important international legal directories, such as Legal 500, Chambers and IFLR1000, and the firm’s lawyers are valued among the best in the country in the field. Sources quoted by Legal 500 declared: “RTPR Allen & Overy’s team is ‘prompt, dedicated and gives excellent solutions’.”

Selected M&A transactions in which RTPR Allen & Overy have been recently involved are set out below:

- the shareholders of A&D Pharma, the largest pharma group in Romania, operating wholesale, retail and marketing & sales business and with operations in CEE as well, on the sale of the entire group to Dr Max, the Czech pharmacy chain owned by Penta Investments

- Autonom Services on the acquisition of BT Operational Leasing, the operational leasing company currently owned by Banca Transilvania group

- Enterprise Investors on the sale of Macon group to Xella Group

- Societatea Energetică Electrica S.A. on the acquisition of the minority stakes held by Fondul Proprietatea in the company’s energy distribution and supply subsidiaries

- ADM Capital on the sale of Brikston Construction Solutions S.A., one of the major players on the masonry and finishing materials market in Romania, to the Austrian group Wienerberger

- DS Smith Plc group in relation to the acquisition of EcoPack and EcoPaper, two major producers of packaging and paper products on the Romanian market

- Enterprise Investors in relation to the sale of Profi supermarket chain to Mid Europa Partners, in the largest deal ever completed by a private equity fund in Romania and the largest deal in the retail sector in the country’s history

- Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd. on the acquisition of Ursus Brewery, one of the largest beer producers in Romania, in a huge deal in which Asahi group purchased the SAB Miller businesses in the region from Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV

- Allianz Capital Partners on the acquisition of a 30% stake in E.ON Distributie Romania, the largest electricity and gas distribution network operator in the northern part of Romania. This is the largest transaction in Romania in the energy sector in the last years.

- South Eastern European Fund on the sale of Total Soft SA, the most important ERP producer in Central Europe

- Enterprise Investors in relation to the acquisition of “Noriel” group, the largest toys and games retailer in Romania

- Regina Maria, the healthcare services provider and Mid Europa Partners on the acquisition of Ponderas Hospital