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Expertise
04/03/2024
CMS North Macedonia advises Linamar Corporation
Published on 4 March 2024
28/11/2023
CMS advises Alder Investment III
Press release - 23.11.2023Alder Investment III, a Nordic private equity fund, which focuses on the development of environmentally sustainable companies, recently closed a transaction to acquire a majority stake in Insort, a maker of high-tech imaging solutions for the food industry, used for optical sorting of food products. Alder was advised by CMS on all legal aspects and certain tax aspects of the trans­ac­tion. "Our ability to cover all relevant legal aspects of the transaction enabled us to provide highly specialised advice on a wide range of topics, which is particularly helpful for investment in a high-tech company. It has been a pleasure working with Alder on this transaction. Congratulations to all parties involved," said Peter Huber, Partner and Head of Corporate Transactions at CMS Vienna. The Corporate/M&A team consisted of lead partner Peter Huber, senior associate Marco Selenic and associate Livia Landskron. Tax structuring issues were handled by partner Sibylle Novak and senior associate Thomas Aspalter. Other team members who provided extensive due diligence and transaction documentation support were senior associate Jia Schulz-Cao (IP), partner Daniela Krömer and associate Shima Babanzadeh (employment), partner Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger (regulatory), partner Dieter Zandler and senior associate Vanessa Horaceck (competition). About Alder Alder is a Nordic investment fund with the aim of creating the best possible conditions for long-term development of environmentally sustainable technology and services companies. With a mix of industrial and financial expertise and with an interest in entrepreneurship as a driving force, Alder creates profitable growth in close cooperation with companies. For more information, visit www. alder. se. About Insort Founded in 2011, Insort GmbH is a global technology leader in vision solutions for the food industry. Insort GmbH focuses on the development, production and marketing of digital sorting and control systems based on its proprietary Chemical Imaging Technology (CIT®). CIT® is a hyperspectral imaging technology designed for maximum performance, which enables the classification of food products based on their chemical composition and is used in-line and in real time. In a very short time, Insort has managed to establish itself globally in the highly competitive digital sorting market with its successful machine series called Sherlock. The company currently employs around 60 people at three locations (Austria, USA, Canada). For more information, visit www. insort. at.
03/05/2023
CMS advises Best in Parking
Press release - 03.05.2023
23/03/2023
CMS advises ALPLA on joint venture with Inden Pharma
Press release - 22.03.2023An international team of experts from CMS advised the ALPLA Group on establishing a joint venture with the Spanish packaging company Inden Pharma. The core CMS Vienna team, led by Alexander Rakosi, included Florian Mayer and Anna Hiegel­sper­ger.   The ALPLA Group and Inden Pharma have strengthened their presence in the pharmaceutical market by founding a joint venture. ALPLA Pharma is contributing production sites in Greece and Poland to the cooperation and Inden Pharma two plants in Spain. Together they plan to set up a site in Germany and triple their production over the next five years. Such cross-border joint venture projects present numerous legal challenges, whose successful implementation requires seamless cooperation between internationally experienced teams from various practice groups and jurisdictions. The expert team for the current ALPLA deal included lawyers from CMS offices in Austria, Spain, Germany and Poland. Alexander Rakosi, Partner at CMS Vienna and responsible for the successful conclusion of the joint venture says: "Cross-border technology and know-how transfer are becoming increasingly important for our clients’ sustainable economic success. We are therefore delighted to have made a valuable contribution to this deal with our global CMS network, our international experience and our in-depth expertise on cross-border deals."The CMS Austria team consisted of corporate/M&A experts Alexander Rakosi, Florian Mayer, Anna Hiegelsperger, Livia Landskron, Ramona Mujanovic, Rebecca Herlitz, Rupert Riedl and Hannah Gierlinger. The Intellectual Property department was represented by Hans Lederer. Dieter Zandler, Vanessa Horaceck and Stefan Sottner were dealing with antitrust and competition law issues. The CMS Spain team, led by Luis Miguel De Dios and Jorge Peris Hevia, also included corporate/M&A experts Ana Vázquez Recio, Lucía Signes de Mesa and Saphira Mouzayek. Víctor Sanjuán Mira, María José Ramos Aguilar, Guillermo García Diéguez, Irene San Martín García and Ricardo Gómez-Barreda de la Gándara were also involved in the due diligence process. Tax law expertise was provided by Ricardo Héctor and Marta Burgos Murillo. The CMS Germany team included Malte Bruhns, Laura Christin Stein, Christin Fischer and Moritz Ziegler. The CMS Poland team consisted of Blazej Zagorski, Joanna Bialoskorska and Aleksandra Dalecka.
06/03/2023
CMS advises Swiss ABB E-mobility AG on Series A financing round
Press release - 06. March 2023A team of experts at CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz advised the Swiss ABB E-mobility AG on the successful Series A financing round of the Viennese PropTech start-up PAYUCA. The two transaction partners have agreed not to disclose the exact amount of the in­vest­ment. Al­ex­an­der Rakosi, Partner at CMS in Vienna, led the Series A investment on behalf of the Swiss ABB E-mobility AG: “I am very pleased that we were able to successfully support our client in taking this important expansion step together with a new Austrian company. In the initial pace-setting financing rounds es­pe­cially, sound professional guidance and strategic support are crucial to enable sustainable growth. With our start-up expertise, we can provide appropriate support in all legal areas.” The CMS core team around partner Alexander Rakosi included lawyer Lisa Oberlechner and associate Thomas Liegl. Jens Winter, Johannes Scharf, Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger, Andreas Lichtenberger and Shima Babanzedeh (due diligence) and Dieter Zandler (competition law) were also involved as experts. ABB E-mobility AG is a leading global provider of electric vehicle charging solutions with more than one million electric vehicle chargers in more than 85 markets, over 50,000 DC fast chargers and more than one million AC char­gers. PAYUCA became known for a smart parking app that enables people looking for parking spaces in Vienna to find and use free parking spaces in private underground garages quickly and easily. Together with ABB E-mobility, the business model is to be extended to the digitalisation and electrification of garages.
03/03/2023
CMS advises DPE on sale of VTU
Press release - 03 March 2023An international CMS team advised DPE Deutsche Private Equity GmbH (DPE) on all aspects of the transaction. The team included lawyers from CMS offices in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Romania and Poland.   DPE is selling its stake in VTU Group, a leading European provider of engineering solutions for the life science industry based in Graz, to Altor Funds. The Swedish private equity firm, which invests in mid-sized companies with the aim of creating value through growth initiatives and operational improvements, prevailed in a bidding process. The sellers, DPE-owned funds, were advised on all aspects of the transaction by an international CMS team led by Hendrik Hirsch (CMS Germany). The transaction is subject to the requisite approvals from the competent authorities. The parties have agreed not to disclose further details of the trans­ac­tion.   The CMS Austria team led by Alexander Rakosi consisted of corporate/M&A experts Florian Mayer, Marco Selenic and Christoph Birner. The employment department was represented by Jens Winter and Shima Babanzadeh. Competition issues were handled by Dieter Zandler. Real estate law expertise was provided by Mariella Kapoun and Maximilian Uidl. Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger was in charge of public law issues and Thomas Aspalter saw to tax is­sues.   Al­ex­an­der Rakosi, partner at CMS in Vienna and leader of the Austrian team, is enthusiastic about the cross-border cooperation: “Once again, we were able to demonstrate our international expertise, especially in the private equity area, in a multi-jur­is­dic­tion­al project – congratulations to all involved!”
29/11/2022
CMS begleitet WEALTHCORE bei Kauf von Wohnobjekten in Wien
Pressemitteilung - 29. November 2022WEALTHCORE hat mit juristischer Unterstützung von CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz zwei Wohn­im­mob­i­li­en­pro­jekte, die dem „dunkel­grün­en“ Top-Nach­haltigkeitsstand­ard nach Artikel 9 der Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation (SFDR) entsprechen, erworben. Die M&A-Spezialist:innen der Wiener Anwaltskanzlei CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz standen dem deutschen In­vest­ment­man­ager WEALTHCORE Investment Management beim Einstieg in den Wiener Immobilienmarkt rechtlich beratend zur Seite. WEALTHCORE hat für seinen neuen Green Impact Fonds das 10.000 Quadratmeter große Wohnbauprojekt „Grosses Glück“ in Wien Donaustadt sowie ein De­vel­op­ment­pro­jekt in Wien Simmering gekauft. Beide Wohnprojekte werden mit der goldenen Nach­haltigkeit­szer­ti­fiz­ier­ung der Ös­ter­reichis­chen Gesellschaft für Nachhaltige Im­mob­i­li­en­wirtschaft (ÖGNI) sowie einer Zertifizierung für tax­onom­iekon­forme Neubauten ausgestattet. Zudem entsprechen die Projekte den noch weitergehenden Nach­haltigkeit­san­for­der­ungen des In­vest­ment­man­agers WEALTHCORE und damit dem höchsten Fondsstandard gemäß Artikel 9 der EU-Of­fen­le­gungs­ver­or­d­nung (SF­DR). Kernthe­men bei der Due Diligence und für den Anteil­skaufver­trag waren liegenschafts- und werk­ver­trag­s­recht­liche Fragen, wie die Prüfung der Liegenschaften, der Bauverträge samt Sicherheiten, des En­er­gieliefer­ver­trags für die Liegenschaft (Geothermie, Photovoltaik) sowie öf­fent­lich-recht­liche und gesell­schaft­s­recht­liche Themen. Die Gesellschaften wurden noch in der Bauphase der Gebäude angekauft. Ein weiterer Fokus lag auf der Einhaltung der ESG-Kriterien des Fonds. Es wurde geprüft, ob auch alle erforderlichen Daten, die ein Artikel-9-Fonds für seine Re­port­ing­p­f­licht­en benötigt, geliefert werden können. Nur Immobilien mit einem besonderen ökologischen, ökonomischen und soziokulturellen Mehrwert können nach einer strengen Überprüfung Bestandteil des WEALTHCORE Green Impact Fonds nach Artikel 9 EU-Of­fen­le­gungs­ver­or­d­nung werden. WEALTHCORE fokussiert sich bei seinen Investitionen für den Green Impact Fonds auf Core/Core+ Wohnung­s­neubauten und nachhaltig sanierte Objekte in Wien sowie in Deutschlands Top 7 Metropolregionen und Leipzig. Das Ankaufsprofil des Fonds sieht umfangreiche Zertifizierungen und höchste Nach­haltigkeit­skri­ter­i­en vor, die teilweise über die Taxonomie hinausgehen. Im Vordergrund stehen eine klimafreundliche En­er­giev­er­sor­gung und ökologische Baumaterialien mit hohen Recyclingquoten sowie optimale Ver­brauch­sef­f­iz­ienz und umfassende Di­git­al­is­ier­ung. Mar­i­ella Kapoun und Arno Zimmermann waren federführend für den erfolgreichen Abschluss der Transaktionen verantwortlich: „ESG-Kriterien werden nicht nur im Finanzbereich, sondern auch im Immobiliensektor immer wichtiger. Für Investoren liegt der Fokus dabei nicht zuletzt in der notwendigen Dekarbonisierung des Gebäudesektors sowie einem transparenten Reporting. Für uns als Rechtsberater ist es eine positive Herausforderung, unsere Mandanten bei derart innovativen Projekten zu begleiten. Wir freuen uns daher sehr, dass wir gemeinsam mit WEALTHCORE zwei zukunftsweisende und EU-Tax­onomie-kon­forme Wohnbauprojekte für Investoren zugänglich machen konnten.“ Zum Be­rater:innen­team von CMS gehörten neben Mariella Kapoun (Real Estate & Construction) und Arno Zimmermann (Gesellschaftsrecht/M&A) auch Rechtsanwältin Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger (Bau-, Gewerbe- und Umweltrecht) und Partner Walter Gapp (Fin­an­zmark­treg­ulier­ung). Johannes Scharf und Christina Schwaiger ergänzten das Team mit ihrer Expertise zu datens­chutzrecht­lichen Fragen. Auf Verkäuferseite vertrat Schönherr Rechtsanwälte GmbH (Clemens Rainer und Markus Buchleitner).  
24/10/2022
CMS advises ABB on the acquisition of ASKI
Press release - 10th October 2022
08/07/2022
Packaging specialist ALPLA expands in Poland - CMS advises on cross-border...
With the support of CMS, the ALPLApharma division further expands its position in Central and Eastern Europe by taking over APON. The internationally active packaging company ALPLA is strengthening the presence of its pharmaceutical division in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) following the acquisition of the Polish company APON. APON was founded in 1985 as a family business. Today, around 45 employees produce plastic packaging for the pharmaceutical industry at the Żyrardów site near Warsaw. Among other things, APON manufactures primary packaging for medicines in accordance with ISO 15378 under clean room conditions. With a staff of around 22,100 at 177 locations in 45 countries worldwide, ALPLA is one of the leading companies in the sphere of plastic packaging and recycling. Alexander Rakosi, Partner and M&A expert at CMS Vienna, is pleased about the closing of the transaction: “We are very proud that we have been able to continue supporting the successful ALPLA Group in the course of its international expansion, this time in the pharmaceutical sector; relying on our international network and our practice groups fully integrated across national borders, we are in a position to offer our clients a customised package of efficient, high quality legal and transactional cross-border advice.”The international CMS team was led by Alexander Rakosi. Marie-Christine Lidl, Anna Hiegelsperger and Dieter Zandler from CMS Vienna were on the team as well. The team of experts from CMS Warsaw was made up of Błażej Zagórski, Joanna Bialoskorska, Kinga Mogilnicka, Aleksandra Dalecka, Tomasz Piotrowski, Michał Serwa, Maciej Olejnik, Agnieszka Górecka, Marta Trębacka, Katarzyna Łoś, Maciej Andrzejewski and Karolina Terech.
27/06/2022
Rohlik – parent company of Gurkerl.at – receives 220 million euros of Series...
The new capital will be used both to finance the online grocer’s continued expansion in Germany, Italy, Spain and Romania and to drive forward technical innovation. Founded in 2014, online grocer Rohlik, which revolutionised grocery in Austria with gurkerl. at, is one of the fastest growing retailers in the Czech Republic and the entire CEE region. Promising delivery just 90 minutes after an order is placed, the company already supplies more than one million customers with more than 17,000 products. Rohlik now not only offers its delivery service in Vienna (gurkerl. at), but also in Prague (rohlik. cz), Budapest (kifli. hu), Munich and Frankfurt (knuspr. de). Soon the service plans to launch in Hamburg, Milan (sezamo. it), Bucharest (sezamo. ro) and Madrid (sezamo. es). The fresh capital will be used to finance continuing expansion and drive technical innovations. Alexander Rakosi, Partner in the CMS Vienna Corporate Transactions Team, is delighted with the deal: “Such a large cross-border transaction always raises a number of complex legal and organisational issues that require sound legal expertise and a well-coordinated transaction team. Our international network enables us to provide our clients with comprehensive advice and access to seasoned experts in all coun­tries.”Man­aging Partner of CMS in Prague and Bratislava, Helen Rodwell, is also pleased about the successful closing: “We are proud to have been able to accompany this new financing round. Rohlik’s unique offering and first-class service make it an attractive growth candidate for investors cautious due to the current economic and geopolitical climate. As a leading international law firm – with a significant presence in CEE and many other European countries – CMS is ideally placed to provide legal support for this kind of cross-border trans­ac­tion.”The Austrian CMS legal team in Vienna included Alexander Rakosi and Florian Mayer (Corporate Law/M&A), Anna Hiegelsperger (Corporate Law/M&A), Jens Winter (Employment & Pensions), Sonja Otenhajmer (Dispute Resolution), Mariella Kapoun (Real Estate & Construction) and Maximilian Uidl (Real Estate & Construction). The international CMS legal team was led by experienced CMS partner Helen Rodwell (CMS Czech Republic) and consisted of David Cranfield (CMS Romania), Štěpán Havránek and Tristan O'Connor (CMS Czech Republic); and Moritz Kopka (CMS UK). Also advising were Florian Kamienke and Oliver Thurn (CMS Germany); Miklos Boros (CMS Hungary); José Luis Rodriguez and Carlos Peña (CMS Spain); Cristina Ciomos and Rodica Manea (CMS Romania); and Alessandra Cuni, Sara Tammarazio and Daniela Murer (CMS Italy). 
31/03/2022
CMS advises Siemens Austria on sale of Austrian facility management business
Apleona acquires Siemens Ge­bäu­de­m­an­age­ment und -Services (SGS). CMS Vienna provides comprehensive legal support to Siemens Aus­tria.   Siemens Austria has agreed to sell Siemens Ge­bäu­de­m­an­age­ment & -Services G.m.b.H. (SGS) to Apleona. The closing of the transaction is expected in the third quarter of the financial year and is subject to customary antitrust approvals. Both companies have maintained a good and close relationship for years. SGS will be further strengthened by joining forces with Apleona, resulting in an expanded and improved range of ser­vices.   Siemens Austria is being legally advised and supported by the Viennese law firm CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz under the leadership of Alexander Rakosi, partner in the Corporate/M&A department. The core CMS team further consists of M&A experts Florian Mayer, Marie-Christine Lidl, Anna Hiegelsperger and Matthias Emich. Sibylle Novak and Alexander Hiermann deal with tax law issues, Andrea Potz, and Jens Winter assist on labour law topics and Bernt Elsner and Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger advise on competition law. Additional support during the course of the transaction came from Daniela Karollus-Bruner, Robert Keisler, Dieter Zandler and Clemens Gross­may­er.   Al­ex­an­der Rakosi is pleased with the successful deal signing: “We are proud to be able to support Siemens on this project with a cross-de­part­ment­al team and contribute to further entrenching Siemens as a focused technology company in Aus­tria.”   Siemens Ge­bäu­de­m­an­age­ment & -Services ¬G.m.b.H., based in Vienna, is a successful man­u­fac­turer-in­de­pend­ent full-service provider in the technical building¬ management¬ sector with around 260 employees. Its customers include institutions from the health care, culture and education, trade and logistics sectors, as well as renowned commercial enterprises. In the last business year, it achieved a turnover of around 75 million euros.
03/02/2022
CMS advises Mayr-Melnhof Holz Holding Group on acquisition of Swedish sawmill...
With the support of CMS Austria, Mayr-Melnhof Holz is continuing its successful course of expansion. Shortly before the end of the year, the traditional Austrian company signed a contract to take over the Swedish sawmill group Bergkvist Siljan. In the 2022 financial year, the company will thus achieve sales of more than EUR 1 billion for the first time in its 170-year history. With this acquisition, Mayr-Melnhof Holz, one of the leading companies in the European sawmill and wood processing industry, is expanding its production capacity by around 50 percent to more than 5.0 million solids cubic metres of sawn timber per year. The closing of the transaction took place on 1 February 2022. The parties agreed not to disclose the financial details of the trans­ac­tion.“We are very pleased that we were able to successfully assist the Mayr-Melnhof Holz Group with this important step in its expansion. The short period of time over which this transaction was negotiated and contractually agreed was exceptional,” said Rainer Wachter, Co-Head of Corporate Transactions at CMS Austria. The CMS team consisted of partner Rainer Wachter (lead), partner Oliver Werner (M&A, W&I Insurance) and lead associate Marco Selenic. Associate Matthias Emich from the corporate team provided support. CMS’s competition law work was handled by partner Dieter Zandler with support from associates Vanessa Horaceck and Arno Scharf. Swedish law firm Wistrand Advokatbyrå (Lead Partner Robert Kullgren) assisted CMS and Mayr-Melnhof Holz. Sustainability in fo­cus­Mayr-Mel­nhof Holz is one of a large number of CMS clients who place the issue of sustainability at the centre of their business activities. For example, the company obtains its raw wood exclusively from sustainably managed forests. With the acquisition, the existing sawmills in Leoben (Austria), Paskov (Czech Republic) and Efimovskij (Russia) have now been joined by three new sites in central Sweden.