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Ben Spiers
 

Ben Spiers

Partner
 
CityPoint | One Ropemaker Street
London EC2Y 9HU EN
 
Fax: +44-(0)20-7275-6502

Ben Spiers is a leading mergers and acquisitions attorney, focusing on public and private M&A, securities and corporate restructurings. He has advised a number of clients on complex cross-border transactions around the globe. Ben has also been recognized as a leader in his field by Chambers UK and IFLR1000.

Ben has stellar experience in UK public takeovers as well as in asset management M&A.

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Work Highlights
  • EQT in its recommended cash acquisition of Keywords Studios Plc
  • A consortium including Blackstone and Thomson Reuters on sales of shares in London Stock Exchange Group Plc in placing, buyback and concurrent sale of call options totaling over $4 billion
  • Veld Capital in its spin-out from AnaCap Financial Partners
  • Barings Private Equity Asia in its acquisition by EQT AB for €6.8 billion
  • Bridgepoint in its £907 million initial public offering
  • Refinitiv in its sale to London Stock Exchange Group in an all share transaction for a total enterprise value of approximately US$27 billion
  • Melrose in its demerger of the GKN Automotive, GKN Powder Metallurgy and GKN Hydrogen businesses into a new independent holding company, Dowlais Group plc, which was listed on the London Stock Exchange
  • Bridgepoint in its sale of a strategic minority investment to Dyal Partners
  • GardaWorld and BC Partners in the hostile takeover offer for G4S plc
Accolades
  • Chambers UK (Corporate/M&A: High-End Capability)
  • IFLR1000 (M&A)
  • The Legal 500 (M&A: Upper Mid-market and Premium Deals)
  • Chambers Global (Private Equity: Buyouts)
Education
  • The College of Law, Chester, 1993
  • University of Oxford, 1990 B.A. (Hons)
Admissions
  • England and Wales 1995

Ben Spiers is a Partner in Simpson Thacher’s London office and a member of the Firm’s Mergers and Acquisitions Practice. Ben’s practice focuses on public and private M&A, securities and corporate restructurings. He has spent many years advising clients on complex cross-border transactions around the globe. 

Ben has stellar experience in UK public takeovers as well as in asset management M&A.

  • EQT in its recommended cash acquisition of Keywords Studios Plc
  • A consortium including Blackstone and Thomson Reuters on sales of shares in London Stock Exchange Group Plc in placing, buyback and concurrent sale of call options totaling over $4 billion
  • Veld Capital in its spin-out from AnaCap Financial Partners
  • Barings Private Equity Asia in its acquisition by EQT AB for €6.8 billion
  • Bridgepoint in its £907 million initial public offering
  • Refinitiv in its sale to London Stock Exchange Group in an all share transaction for a total enterprise value of approximately US$27 billion
  • Melrose in its demerger of the GKN Automotive, GKN Powder Metallurgy and GKN Hydrogen businesses into a new independent holding company, Dowlais Group plc, which was listed on the London Stock Exchange
  • Bridgepoint in its sale of a strategic minority investment to Dyal Partners
  • GardaWorld and BC Partners in the hostile takeover offer for G4S plc
  • Blackstone in its recommended offer to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Industrials REIT Limited (“Industrials”) at 168 pence per share
  • Oakley Capital in its announced acquisitions of Construction Testing Solutions and the Phenna Group
  • Bridgepoint in its £907 million initial public offering
  • Melrose Industries in the sale of its Nortek Air Management business to Madison Industries for approximately £2.62 billion
  • Blackstone in its acquisition of Bourne Leisure and in its acquisition of Desotec
  • True Wind Capital in its equity investment, alongside FTV Capital, in Sysnet Global Solutions 
  • BC Partners in its sale of a passive, minority investment to Blackstone Alternative Asset Management
  • Blackstone in its takeover of Hansteen Holdings plc for £500 million
  • Melrose Industries in its successful £8.1 billion hostile offer for GKN plc
  • Blackstone in its acquisition of Cirsa Gaming Corporation, S.A. for €2.2 billion 
  • Silver Lake in its takeover of ZPG plc (with co-investment from GIC and PSP) for £2.2 billion 

Ben’s experience prior to Simpson Thacher includes representing Honeywell International in its acquisition of the Elster division of Melrose Industries for £3.3 billion, where he first came across Simpson Thacher across the table.  

Ben has been recognized as a leader in his field by Chambers UK and IFLR1000. He received his B.A. (Hons) degree from the University of Oxford in Pure and Applied Biology and completed a law conversion qualification and law school at the College of Law in Chester. He is admitted to the Law Society of England and Wales.

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