Kirkland advised Avanti Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that will target European businesses with a strong US nexus, in connection with its $600 million IPO.  The SPAC was sponsored by NNS Group, the investment group founded by entrepreneur Nassef Sawiris, and Sienna Capital, the alternative investment platform of Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (GBL).  Avanti Acquisition’s shares began trading on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “AVAN” on 2 October, 2020.

This is the first IPO of a SPAC completed out of the Kirkland’s European offices. In the U.S., Kirkland is the market leader in SPAC IPOs and has advised on more SPAC M&A transactions than any other law firm this year.

The matter involved close collaboration across Kirkland’s London and New York offices. In London, the team was led by capital markets partner Cedric Van den Borren and associate Serguei Chevtchenko. In New York, the team was led by capital markets partner Christian Nagler and associate Christopher Kim and tax partners Mike Beinus and Scott Fryman. New York capital markets partner Peter Seligson and associate Mathieu Kohmann also assisted on the transaction.