Major economic reforms in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have brought on an influx of direct foreign investments and a marked increase in merger and acquisition activity. These sensitive transactions demand rigorous due diligence and can attract the attention of Saudi competition and anti-trust agencies looking to prevent monopolistic or oligopolistic practices.

AlGhazzawi & Partners is widely considered to be the leading M&A law firm in Saudi Arabia. With over 50 years of experience focusing on corporate and commercial law, our team has handled some of the largest and most complex M&A transactions in the Kingdom. Whether you are a potential partner, acquirer, or readying your business for sale, our legal team has repeatedly demonstrated its robust business acumen to the advantage of domestic and foreign-owned clients alike across all key market sectors.

Mergers & Acquisitions Help for Domestic and Foreign-Owned Businesses

The complex ownership structure of many Saudi firms often involving a large number of shareholders and foreign partners, combined with the rapidly changing regulatory environment, pose unique challenges for merger and acquisition transactions in the Kingdom. Such undertakings require a thorough analysis and due diligence from varying perspectives – including a sharp legal lens. In fact, comprehensive legal due diligence requires a team that is not only well versed with different corporate and regulatory aspects but can draw specialists from other domains of law.

With our Cooperation Agreement with Gowling WLG, we combine our extensive local knowledge with Gowling’s global M&A expertise. This allows us to seamlessly serve our clients on multi-jurisdictional transactions.

Our M&A practice group regularly advises on:

• Legal entities and business structures favoured by regulators and banks.
• Drafting and finalization of all transaction documentation from preliminary discussions to closing and post-closing support.
• Competition and anti-trust concerns.
• Compliance with conventional and Sharia law.
• Banking and finance matters including restructuring of debt and other financing facilities.
• Various regulatory, licensing, and permitting issues.
• Compliance with environmental regulations.
• Validation, protection, and transfer of licenses, patents, trademarks and Intellectual Property.
• Employment practices compliance for domestic and foreign staff.
• Search for outstanding court orders and lawsuits.
• Options for binding alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.
• Compliance with industry-specific laws and regulations.
• Compliance with tax regulations.
• Real Estate purchase and/or disposition matters.

And should you find yourself in a position of irreconcilable conflict, our litigation practice group is ready to protect your interests.

About Our Mergers & Acquisitions Practice Group

Our legal team has over five decades of experience advising clients on merger and acquisition matters. We are highly sensitive to the need for confidentiality and urgent action throughout the due diligence and negotiation process. We work closely with our clients’ executive teams and alongside other trusted advisors such as investment banks and accounting consultancies to successfully complete the transaction.

Notable Merger & Acquisition projects include:

• Conducting the legal due diligence and formalizing the transaction with various agencies for a business conglomerate engaged in the manufacturing and sale of consumer and industrial paper and plastic products. This transaction involved amalgamating ten large companies valued over USD $60 million into a single company.
• Advising a renowned chain of hypermarkets in the sale of a chain of supermarkets to a high-profile Saudi corporation managing and operating over 200 stores in the Kingdom and other Gulf Cooperation Council Countries.
• Advising an investor group in the sale of a limited partnership company comprised of 50 shareholders.
• Advising an Abu Dhabi financial institution on its US$ 134 million acquisition of a hotel in Makkah.
• Advising an Ukrainian publicly listed company on the acquisition of a company in the poultry business.
• Advising SEDCO Capital on its acquisition of a leading international school in Jeddah.
• Advising a Lebanese holding conglomerate on its acquisition of three contracting companies.
• Advising Rentokill, a UK listed company, on its acquisition of a Saudi pest control and chemical company.
• Advising Contrack FM, a subsidiary of Orascom, an Egyptian conglomerate, on its acquisition of 50% of a facility management and maintenance Saudi company.
• Advising Gulf Finance House on its acquisition of a mall in Jeddah.
• Working with Investcorp Gulf Opportunity Fund on various acquisitions in Saudi Arabia, including its acquisition of a majority stake in a leading Saudi Arabian jewelry manufacturer and retailer in the context of US $280 million.
• Advising a major Kuwaiti investment company in the acquisition of 40% of a leading Saudi car lease company.
• Advising a major Saudi company on all its agreements, i.e. lease agreements and all related agreements as well as on the restructuring of its relationship with its international partner; the restructuring involved spinning off the existing company, creating two different companies; drafting and reviewing all agreements relating to the acquisition of shares and the transfer of all licenses, assets and employees etc. to the new entities;
• Advising a leading publicly listed Saudi corporation on its acquisition of the entire assets and interests in a fiberglass insulation business in the Middle East from a large Saudi entity.
• Advising a French consumer finance company in the acquisition of 50% of the share capital of a Saudi company carrying out trade activities.
• Advising a Kuwaiti holding company in connection with the acquisition of a major Saudi retail entity having several subsidiaries in the MENA region.
• Advising a leading bottled water company on the sale of 35% of its shares to a Saudi investment company.
• Working closely with various Bahraini, Kuwaiti, Emirati, and Hong Kong investment banks and companies on various multi-million dollars acquisitions of Saudi companies.
• Advising a Saudi fund management company on acquisition of 40% of the holding company of a renowned perfumes industry chain in Saudi Arabia in the amount of USD $45 million.
• Advising a leading multinational foreign investment institution on various acquisitions in Saudi Arabia, including its acquisition of a majority stake in leading Saudi Arabia jewelry manufacturer and retailer valued at USD $280 million.
• Advising a major Japanese company on the acquisition of a German company, which owns Saudi industrial subsidiaries that are engaged in the manufacture of welded, stainless steel, aluminum metal, and structural tubular pipes.
• Conducting comprehensive due diligence for a renowned oil drilling and surveying giant in its acquisition of a minority stake in a large joint venture operating in similar activities.

Contact Our M&A Practice Group

No matter the complexity of your transaction, our legal team has the capabilities and depth to produce results. With offices located in Jeddah, Dammam, and Riyadh, we support domestic and international clients across the Kingdom. Contact us to book a consultation.