Ken Barry

Ken's experience includes advising:

Representation of Goldman Sachs:

• on its majority investment in Trackunit, a leading global SaaS and operating data platform provider for the construction industry;
• on its majority investment in Synthon, a global leader in complex generic drug development and manufacturing;
• and its portfolio company, Advania:
  • on its acquisition of CCS Media, a technology and solution specialist with over 41 years of experience delivering first-class IT solutions and services to organisations across the UK;
  • on its sale of its software application, Quality 360 Application, to ServiceNow, Inc.;
  • on its acquisition of Valtti Group, a full IT-services provider, focused on the mid-market in Finland providing cloud services, modern workplace, end-user services and cyber security capabilities;
  • on its acquisition of Content+Cloud, a Microsoft-focused cloud services and digital transformation partner based in the UK; and
  • on its acquisition of Visolit, a corporate IT solutions and cloud services business active in Norway and Sweden;
• on its acquisition of Norgine, a leading European specialist pharmaceutical company;
• on forming a consortium alongside Advent, Centerbridge, CPPIB, and LGT Group, to launch a take-private offer for Aareal Bank AG, an international specialist property financing bank listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange for consideration of €29 per share, and an implied equity value of €1.8 billion;
• as lead investor in a Series D fundraising into French robotics company, Exotec. Exotec is the designer and manufacturer of the Goods to Person SKYPOD solution, which enables order preparation in retail logistics;
• on its investment in Elinvar, a leading digital platform for asset and wealth managers, in connection with its €25 million Series C fund raising;
• on its investment in the weFox Group, a Berlin insurtech platform firm specialising in digital insurance in Germany, Austria and Switzerland;
• on the acquisition of a majority of the shares in Advania, a leading Nordic IT provider, alongside management, VIA Equity and other reinvesting shareholders for an EV of SEK 4.8 billion, approximately €480 million;
• and other majority shareholder, on the disposal of M-Tec Holding Denmark ApS, a holding company for Trackunit Group to HgCapital. Trackunit Group is a Danish telematics manufacturer with operations in Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, UK and US; and
• on its investment into and disposal of Moonbug Entertainment, a children's entertainment company that distributes audio and video content on various platforms including YouTube, Amazon Prime and Netflix.

Representation of The Carlyle Group:

• on its sale of 1E, a leader in Digital Employee Experience ("DEX") software solutions, to TeamViewer SE (TMV.DE), the listed German company, at an enterprise value of US$720 million;
• on its strategic capital package to the Jordanes group;
• on its acquisition of Meopta Optika, a manufacturer of optical, opto-mechanical, and opto-electronic solutions headquartered in the Czech Republic;
• on a c. US$55 million Series B round into Hack the Box, a gamified cybersecurity training platform, based in the UK with a presence in Greece and the US;
• on its acquisition of a majority stake in international digital marketing agency Incubeta Holdings International Limited;
• on its acquisition of Tescan;
• on its acquisition of LiveU, an Israeli-headquartered producer of portable cellular backpacks for video streaming and live broadcasting from Francisco Partners, the manager shareholder and minority shareholders;
• on its acquisition of 1E Limited the IT software and services company from its founders;
• on its acquisition of disguise, a global provider of live event visualisation solutions, from Livingbridge and its founders;
• on its acquisition of a majority stake in Memsource a.s., a leading Czech translation technology provider that assists global corporations and the language services industry in the automation of localisation relating to large volumes of multilingual content;
• on its equity and debt investment in the Unifrutti Group, a leading global distributor of fresh produce and fruit, through a preference equity injection and the tap of an existing bond;
• on its acquisition of Phrase, a leading translation software provider, by the Carlyle Technology Fund and its portfolio company, Memsource; and
• on the proposed structured equity investment into Sazka;

Representation of MidEuropa, a leading buyout investor focused on the growth markets of Central and South Eastern Europe:

• on its sale of a majority stake in Symfonia to Accel-KKR, a leading global technology investment firm focused on software and tech-enabled companies. Symfonia is one of the leading providers of financial management, payroll and ERP software to accounting offices and small-and medium-sized enterprises in Poland;
• on its €1.3 billion sale of Profi to Ahold Delhaize, a Dutch-Belgian listed multinational retail and wholesale holding company. Profi is the leading supermarket and convenience stores chain in Romania;
• on its acquisition of a majority stake in Optegra, a European ophthalmology platform operating in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and the United Kingdom;
• on its sale of the shares representing 90% of the share capital of Özel Kent Sağlık Hizmetleri ve Malzemeleri Sanayi Ticaret A.Ş., to Acıbadem Sağlık Hizmetleri ve Ticaret A.Ş., one of the leading healthcare providers in Türkiye;
• on its acquisition of Sage sp. z o.o., who provide accounting software services to small and medium enterprises in Poland, from the Sage Group Plc;
• on the sale of Walmark a.s., a leading consumer healthcare company in CEE with a unique portfolio of iconic brands and direct presence across nine EU countries, to STADA Arzneimittel AG;
• on the merger of Customer Management Center (CMC), the largest independent outsourced call centre and customer management services provider in Türkiye, with the M+ Group, the largest independent business process outsourcing (BPO) company in the CEE region;
• on the sale of Bambi, the leading biscuit producer in the countries of former Yugoslavia, to Coca-Cola HBC AG (Coca-Cola HBC);
• on its acquisition of intive S.A., a digital product and software development services business based in Poland, Germany and Argentina from Enterprise Investors;
• on the acquisition of the Allegro Group, the largest online marketplace and non-food shopping destination in Poland, from Naspers Limited (JSE: NPN.SJ and LSE: NPSN) by funds advised by Cinven, Permira and MidEuropa;
• on the sale of Zabka Polska S.A., Poland's leading convenience retailer to funds advised by CVC Capital Partners. This is the largest ever transaction in the Polish food retail sector and the largest ever private equity exit in Poland;
• on its acquisition of a controlling stake in Danube Foods Group B.V., the leading branded fast moving consumer goods platform in the former Yugoslavia and Clates Holding B.V.;
• on the acquisition of Urgent Cargus SA, a Romanian based courier business from Abris Capital Partners; and
• on its acquisition of JS Hamilton.

Representation of CDPQ on:

• on the sale of its stake in Heathrow Airport as part of Ardian and PIF’s acquisition of a 37.62% stake in Heathrow Airport; and
• on French aspects of its C$10.0 billion take private of Innergex Renewable Energy, an independent renewable power producer.

Representation of Triton:

• on the acquisition of WaveLynx Technologies Corporation, a leader in the secure and open mobile-first identity and access control solutions industry; and
• as Sponsor, its portfolio company, ACRE Operating Group, LLC, and Spitfire Parent, Inc., as Borrower, in a term loan facility in connection with the acquisition of Feenics, Inc., an access control as a service (ACaaS) platform.

Representation of A.P.Moller Capital:

• on its acquisition of a 51% stake in Bergé Infraestructuras y Servicios Logísticos, S.L.U who develop port operations, transport logistics, shipping and processes relating to the steel and automotive industries from Bergé y Compañía, S.A.;
• on its acquisition of 100% of Vector Logistics, a wholly owned subsidiary of JSE listed RCL Foods;
• on its acquisition of a 49% stake in KEG Holdings Limited, a liquified petroleum gas business operating in East Africa, by A.P. Moller Capital and Royal Bafokeng Holdings from Emerging Capital Partners and the KEG founder; and
• on its long-term joint venture with Hassan Allam Utilities, a leading Egyptian engineering, construction and infrastructure company, to create an integrated logistics platform offering an array of services, including air cargo handling facilities, logistics and distribution centers, integrated warehousing parks and inland dry ports.

Representation of APMH GE P/S on its US$20 million investment into Tenderd, Inc., a software company, in exchange for shares of Series A preferred stock.

Representation of CVC Capital Partners:

• on its aborted bid for a Nordic utilities conglomerate; and
• on its ongoing acquisition of a CEE-based consumer goods business.

Representation of BC Partners LLP on the acquisition of an up to approximately 45% stake in SOFIMA, the holding company that controls IMA S.p.A., an Italian publicly-traded company and world leader in the design and production of automatic machines for the processing and packaging of pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food, tea, coffee and tobacco.

Representation of PPF Group, a global private equity investor:

• on the €2.8 billion acquisition of Telenor's telecommunications assets in Central & Eastern Europe; and
• on the acquisition of Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ/Prague Stock Exchange: CETV) and its subsidiaries ("CME"). CME operates television stations in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Representation of AS Graanul Invest, a world leader in biomass and bioenergy production, and the largest producer of wood pellets in Europe, on the sale of a majority stake to funds managed by the affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc.

Representation of Keter Group, the world's largest producer of quality resin consumer products on the acquisition by BC Partners Ltd and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board of a majority stake in the group from the Sagol family. The transaction is the biggest ever LBO in Israel and has been described as the "deal of the decade" in the Israeli press.

Representation of Petroleum Equity on the acquisition of RDG (a leading independent German oil and gas exploration company) from Rohöl-Aufsuchungs Aktiengesellschaft.

Representation of Development Partners International, a leading African focused private equity firm, on a US$45 million investment in MNT Investments B.V. to attain a significant minority stake.

Representation of HTN Towers group, (a portfolio company of Helios Investment Partners) on its sale to IHS Towers. This was the first mobile infrastructure consolidation in Africa.