Simpson Thacher represented former Chairman and CEO of Eaton Vance, Thomas E. Faust Jr., and his affiliated entities in the purchase of a controlling interest in ReFlow Services, LLC (“ReFlow”), a registered investment adviser that manages a private fund that serves as a benevolent shareholder of mutual funds experiencing net shareholder redemptions, purchasing shares when needed to offset net cash outflows. By accepting distributions of eligible securities when it later redeems, ReFlow makes in-kind redemptions a practical alternative for funds whose shareholders otherwise redeem shares for cash, enabling participating mutual funds to achieve the same performance and shareholder tax benefits that ETFs have long enjoyed from using in-kind redemptions.
The Simpson Thacher team included Joe Conahan, Andy Alin, Carolina Vieira, Conor Gutierrez and Matthew Suhosky (M&A); Gillian Emmett Moldowan, John O’Neill and Matthew Behrens (Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits); David Blass, Naffie Lamin and Raymond Jensen (Funds – Regulatory); Yoni Levy and Axelle Vivien (Private Funds); Drew Purcell and Jessica Berman (Tax); John Ilardo and Thomas Howland (Credit and Banking); James Talbot, Alexander Kokka and Christian Bond (IP); Erica Rozow (ERISA); Abram Ellis, James Perry and Olenka Burghardt (Regulatory); and Krista McManus (Real Estate).