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Bakers helps firm launch in Oz
Baker & McKenzie has acted for an American private equity consortium investing in Australia for the first time.
Digital
Firms: Baker & McKenzie (Platinum Equity); Telstra (King & Wood Mallesons)
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Deal: Platinum Equity takes a 70 per cent stake in Sensis
Area: M&A
Value: $454 million
Key Players: A number of Bakers’ partners acted on the deal, with the firm putting a large team on the transaction. Craig Andrade (pictured) led the Bakers’ team, with partners Simon De Young, Adrian Lawrence, Anthony Foley, John Walker, Sean Rush and Bryony Binns all assisting. The KWM team included the Australian chairman of the firm, Stephen Minns, and his partnership colleagues, Joseph Muraca and Cheng Lim.
Deal significance: Platinum Equity is headquartered in Los Angeles, but also has offices in New York, Boston and London. Analysts believe it got a good deal by taking a majority stake in Sensis, which publishes the Yellow and White pages. Telstra CEO David Thodey said that the deal means Platinum Equity will give Sensis “the focus it needs to extend and enhance customer offerings and benefits in an agile digital world”. In 2011 a barney over the copyright of the White and Yellow Pages went to the High Court.
