Iván Varga is a partner and a leading member of White & Case's Private Equity, Mergers and Acquisitions and Capital Markets practice. Iván divides his time between our Budapest and Singapore offices. He is a Hungarian and Australian qualified lawyer who has built a solid reputation for crafting innovative solutions that give clients a competitive advantage in complex, multi-jurisdictional transactions. Iván has helped a large number of clients close their transactions in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).

Iván's deep experience includes implementing a variety of mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance transactions for his clients in a wide range of industries, such as transportation, financial services, foods & beverages, energy, pulp & paper, clean technology, automotive and real estate.

In the area of mergers and acquisitions and private equity, Iván's significant experience includes advising:

• A major private equity firm in connection with its investment in, and successful exit from, the leading CEE road freight transport and logistics group. The exit was carried out and closed in conjunction with a leading CEE private equity firm' s acquisition of a majority stake in the freight transport company through the acquisition of shares from the founder and CEO of the company and a subsequent €12 million capital increase;
• One of the leading telecommunications service providers in Hungary and also a portfolio company of a leading CEE private equity firm, in connection with its bolt-on acquisition of the fourth largest cable operator in Hungary, in an auction sale conducted by the cable operator's owner and its creditors, along with a simultaneous asset sale to the leading provider of cable television, broadband internet and voice services in Europe;
• One of the largest private equity and venture capital management firms in CEE in connection with its acquisition of a controlling stake (80%) in the leading independent online non-life insurance broker in Hungary. The €23 million buyout transaction was the firm's first investment in Hungary;
• In the largest tech venture capital transaction in CEE for 2008, an international investment firm that invests in environmental and emissions markets assets worldwide, and its co-investor, an Austrian venture capital firm drawing from its Luxemburg-based fund, in their subscription of new shares in a Hungarian company which designs and markets industrial and municipal wastewater treatment plants which make use of unique organic treatment methods, such as aquatic plants and waste-eating organisms. This was the first CEE transaction for both firms;
• The largest single investor in CEE and a private equity co-investor in their €20 million co-investment in the newly-formed Hungarian technology company, a global point of sale processor of electronic prepaid products and services and a provider of enhanced mobile services for global communications and commerce;
• A leading worldwide supplier of research laboratory equipment in connection with the acquisition of a Hungarian family business specializing in the supply of laboratory equipment. The transaction involved the acquisition of a 100% interest in the Hungarian company from four private individuals, with some of the original owners being retained by the company in a management role;
• One of the largest healthcare investors and operator through Private Public Partnerships (PPP) in Europe on the acquisition of a global powerhouse's Hungarian imaging diagnostics business. The transaction involved the acquisition of a 100% interest in the powerhouse's subsidiary;
• UK's leading airport operator on the €1.9 billion sale of the airport operator's majority stake in a Hungarian state-owned airport to an international consortium led by a German airport operator. The transaction resulted in the firm being named Airport Finance Law Firm of the Year by Jane's Transport Finance in 2007;
• A Hungarian state-owned airport on the auction sale of its ground handling business, which was ultimately purchased by a Turkish ground handling operator;
• A Swiss food giant in connection with (i) the acquisition of a Hungarian chocolate wafer countline business from a subsidiary of the world's second largest confectionery company, and (ii) the sale of its Hungarian frozen food distribution business and a Hungarian ice cream factory to a private German frozen food company;
• One of the largest multinational technology companies in Greece in the sale of its Hungarian subsidiary to the subsidiary's management; and
• A private equity firm focusing on Central Europe in connection with the disposal of a Hungarian commercial bank to the Belgian subsidiary of a global financial services company.

In addition to his broad M&A experience, Iván also has substantial experience representing clients in commercial disputes and internal investigations in white collar matters. He has recently advised, among others:

• The Hungarian subsidiary of a global industrial company in relation to the settlement of dispute relating to a substantial trade receivable owed by one of the portfolio companies of a global clean technology fund;
• A leading Romanian and regional chemical fertilizers supplier in a complex matter involving a significant trade receivable that the fertilizer company had been trying to collect for over 1.5 years. Iván and his team successfully structured an out-of-court settlement, which resulted in the payment of the receivable to our client in full;
• A New York Stock Exchange listed Hungarian telecommunications company in an internal investigation pertaining to a number of agreements entered into by certain of its foreign subsidiaries allegedly in violation of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act; and
• A leading provider of cable television, broadband internet and voice services in Europe in relation to an internal investigation of allegations of wrongdoing by certain members of the management of its Hungarian subsidiary and its CEE regional management.

Bars and Courts
Solicitor of the Supreme Court of New South Wales of Australia, 2007
Budapest Bar, 2000

Education
Grad Dip in Legal Practice, College of Law, Sydney, 2007
Grad Dip in Law, LPAB, Sydney, 2005
LLM, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 1999
JD, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, 1997

Awards and Recognition
Chambers Europe, 2011

Speaking Engagements
"The Impact of the AIFM Directive on Private Equity and Venture Capital Managers," AGM of the Hungarian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (HVCA), Budapest, March 2011
"What Constitutes a 'Material Adverse Change' in the Context of an M&A Transaction?," HVCA and White & Case Breakfast Seminar, Budapest, February 2009

Languages
Hungarian
English

Citizenship
Hungary