Baker McKenzie advised French IT services provider Atos on the acquisition of cryptovision, a leader in state-of-the-art cryptographic products and solutions for securing digital identities. The transaction is expected to close towards the end of the third quarter of 2021 and is subject to regulatory approvals and the consent of various boards of the parties. The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
Baker McKenzie advised Atos - together with the Atos inhouse legal team - on all legal aspects of the transaction, except for the merger filing.
"The transaction is a great success both for our client Atos and for us. This strategic move further expands Atos' strategy to strengthen its cybersecurity presence, capabilities and portfolio worldwide", comments Dr. Florian Kästle, lead partner of the transaction.
The London corporate team - led by Baker McKenzie partner David Hart - advised Atos in parallel on its acquisition of Ipsotek, a leading provider of AI-powered video analytics software.
cv cryptovision GmbH is one of the leading specialists for modern, user-friendly cryptography and secure electronic identities. With its solutions, over 250 million people world-wide and a multitude of institutions in the digital world protect themselves against hacker attacks, manipulation, misuse of identities and espionage. cryptovision addresses various industries such as public administration, health, automotive, finance & insurance, energy or IT.
Atos is a global leader in digital transformation with 105,000 employees and annual revenue of over € 11 billion. European number one in cybersecurity, cloud and high performance computing, the Group provides tailored end-to-end solutions for all industries in 71 countries. A pioneer in decarbonization services and products, Atos is committed to a secure and decarbonized digital for its clients. Atos operates under the brands Atos and Atos|Syntel. Atos is a SE (Societas Europaea), listed on the CAC40 Paris stock index.
The global Corporate/M&A team of Baker McKenzie advises on more cross-border transactions than any other law firm. Most recently the team advised Deutsche Beteiligungs AG on the sale of its stake in DNS:Net, Cognizant on the acquisition of ESG Mobility, Paragon on the sale of NovumIP to Questel Group, TA Associates on the acquisition of a majority stake in IGEL, Embracer on the acquisition of Easybrain Limited, SK Telecom on a joint venture with Deutsche Telekom, Chr. Hansen Holding A/S on the acquisition of Jennewein Biotechnologie GmbH, DBAG on an investment in congatec Holding AG, SAP on the sale of the communication unit SAP Digital Interconnect to Sinch AB, Air Liquide on the sale of the Schülke Group to the Swedish financial investor EQT, METRO AG on the establishment of a strategic partnership with Wumei Technology Group, Bayer AG on the sale of its majority stake in the chemical park operator Currenta and Evonik on the sale of its methacrylate business to Advent International.
Legal advisor to Atos:
Baker McKenzie
Lead:
Corporate/M&A: Dr. Florian Kästle (partner, Frankfurt)
Team:
Corporate/M&A: Stephan Gönczöl (associate, Munich)
IT: Dr. Holger Lutz (partner, Frankfurt), Simone Rieken (senior associate, Frankfurt)
Public Law: Anahita Thoms (partner, Dusseldorf), Dr. Andreas Schulz (counsel, Berlin), Alexander Ehrle (associate, Berlin)
Commercial: Katharina Spenner (partner, Munich), Dr. Johannes Teichmann (partner, Frankfurt), Rebecca Romig (associate, Frankfurt), Brigitte Estner (associate, Munich)
Atos Legal Inhouse Team: Anne-Sophie Poirier, Guillaume Regnier