Latham & Watkins has advised leading private investment house Ardian on the acquisition of a majority stake in LIFTKET Group (LIFTKET) from Afinum. LIFTKET is a leading European supplier of electric chain hoists and control systems for sensitive uses. LIFTKET’s management team, led by CEO Jürgen Dlugi, will reinvest significantly and continue to lead the company. Afinum will continue to support the company as a minority shareholder.
The Latham team was led by Munich partner Burc Hesse, Frankfurt partner Susanne Decker and Frankfurt/Munich partner Sebastian Pauls, with Munich associates Andreas Holzgreve, Chris Freitag, Manuel Schmutzler, and Jeremias Bura, and Frankfurt associates Lennart Werbeck and Lara Stelmach. Advice was also provided on IP matters by Frankfurt partner Susan Kempe-Müller, with associate Daniela Jaeger; on antitrust matters by Frankfurt partner Max Hauser, with Hamburg counsel Jana Dammann de Chapto and Frankfurt associates Victoria Pfaff and Markus Welzenbach; on tax matters by Munich partner Stefan Süß, with associate Johannes Lieb; on real estate matters by Frankfurt partner Otto von Gruben, with associate Marie-Christine Welp; and on employment matters by Munich counsel Florian Dehmel and associate Christian Strauß.
