Van Doorne

We advised Stern Groep N.V., the listed Dutch mobility group in automotive retail and services, on the sale and transfer of all the shares in SternFacilitair B.V. to Hedin Mobility Group AB. SternFacilitair B.V., the Dutch mobility group in automotive retail and services, is pleased to report that it will be part of Hedin Mobility Group AB as per Q1 2022. Hedin Mobility Group is a large family-owned company with operations in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Belgium and Switzerland, mainly in the sale and service of vehicles, wholesale of spare parts and tires for vehicles and rental car operations. The transaction involves the core operating assets of SternFacilitair B.V., which consist of the dealer activities, the car repair activities, the car rental activities and holding activities of SternFacilitair, but excluding the shares Stern holds in Bovemij N.V. The total value of the transaction is at least EUR 103 million. The cash consideration to be paid by Hedin Mobility Group AB is EUR 83 million, allowing Stern Groep N.V. to pay an extraordinary dividend of up to EUR 14.75 per share. According to Stern and Hedin, the scale of the relationships with major automotive manufacturers and other participants in the value chain in a pan-European group offers additional diversity and reduced commercial risks for all stakeholders. Moreover, they believe that the combined group will be very well positioned to play a leading role in the expected ongoing consolidation of automotive retailers in Europe.

We advised  Cigna on the sale of life-, accident- and supplemental benefits businesses to Chubb (NYSE: CB). The total value of the transaction was USD 5.75bn. Upon completion of the transaction, Chubb will acquire Cigna's life-, accident- and supplemental benefits businesses in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, New Zealand, Taiwan and Thailand as well as Cigna's 51% interest in a joint venture in Turkey. Cigna's 51% interest in the Turkish joint venture is structured through a Dutch company whose share transfer is part of the worldwide proposed transaction. On 7 October 2021 definitive agreement was signed. The transaction is expected to be completed in 2022 and is subject to required regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.

We assisted EasyPark with the acquisition of the PARK NOW group. EasyPark is a strong and highly experienced international player  active in the field of digital parking services. PARK NOW operates under the brands RingGO, PARK NOW, PARK LINE and PARK MOBILE in eleven countries. PARK NOW is the market leader in the US, UK and the Netherlands. EasyPark is active in more than 20 countries and more than 2200 cities. EasyPark helps drivers remotely find, manage and pay for both parking and electric vehicle charging in one application seamlessly across all countries. PARK NOW forms part of a joint venture between BMW and Daimler.