Poland: shopaholic

Magic circle law firm Clifford Chance has advised German property company Allianz Real Estate on its first investment in a shopping centre in Poland.
Lawyers from Clifford Chance offices in Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Warsaw and Amsterdam advised on the structure of the joint venture and the related contracts.
The international consortium of investors led by Allianz will acquire the Polish shopping centre ‘Silesia City Center’ in Katowice from a subsidiary of Austrian Immofinanz €400 million deal, subject to the approval from antitrust authorities.
The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Christian Keilich and included senior associate Henning Aufderhaar (both real estate) and corporate partner Christine Koziczinski.

London: that’s entertainment

New York entertainment business Entertainment One has been advised by Chicago law firm Mayer Brown on its proposed transfer from the standard listing segment to the premium listing segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority.
Subject to the premium listing becoming effective and other conditions being met, Entertainment One will be considered for inclusion into the FTSE UK Index Series, in August 2013, which includes FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and FTSE All Share indices.
The Mayer Brown team was led by corporate partner Robert Hamill and included senior associate Rebecca Bothamley and associate Frances Hull.

São Tomé: get connected

French law firm Gide Loyrette Nouel has advised the Government of the Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe and the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (AGER) on the opening up of the telecommunications sector to competition via the award of a second 2G/3G licence to a new operator, following an international tender procedure.
The Portuguese-speaking island-nation in the Gulf of Guinea had already been assisted by the firm in their negotiations with the incumbent operator CST for the implementation of company STP-Cabo as a public-private partnership complying with the open access principle.
The Gide team was led by partner Rémy Fekete.

Europe: deal flow

Global law firm White & Case has flexed its European muscle and successfully closed six deals in the last six weeks across a whole spectrum of European jurisdictions.
In Italy, White & Case advsied WIND Group in connection with the issuance of €150 million Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2019 and US$550 million 6.5 per cent Senior Secured Fixed Rate Notes due 2020.
In France, the firm advised JP Morgan, Crédit Agricole, HSBC and Nomura acting as initial purchasers in connection with an offering by contract catering company Elior Finance & Co of €350 million 6.50 per cent Senior Secured Notes due 2020.
White & Case were also active in Finland, advising Sanitec Oyj, a leading producer of ceramic sanitary-ware, on its high yield bond offering of €250 million Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2018.
In the UK the firm assisted Pendragon PLC (as issuer), the largest operator of franchise motor vehicle dealerships in the United Kingdom, and 66 of its subsidiaries (as guarantors) on its high yield bond offering of £175 million 6.875 per cent Senior Secured Notes due 2020.
The firm acted for Jefferies LLC and Goldman Sachs in Germany as joint bookrunners and managers for a €225 million issuance of Senior PIK Notes by a holding company of the Klöckner Pentaplast Group.
And finally, in the Czech Republic, White & Case advised JP Morgan, Société Générale, Royal Bank of Scotland and UniCredit Bank as joint bookrunners for EP Energy’s issuance of €600 million senior secured notes.