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Four firms involved in major drug company merger
DLA Piper, Allens, Clayton Utz and Hogan Lovells are involved in a proposed merger between Melbourne-based drug development company Biota Holdings and Nasdaq-listed firm Nabi Biopharmaceuticals.
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Firms: DLA Piper and Allens (Biota Holdings Ltd), Clayton Utz and Hogan Lovells (Nabi Biopharmaceuticals)
Area: Corporate
Value: $240 million
Key players: Melbourne-based partner Craig Henderson led the Allens team with support from senior associate Magnus Mason, lawyers Samantha Samuel and Anna Schwartz and law graduate Alice Bungey.
Deal significance: Under the deal, which was announced on 23 April, Biota has agreed to move to the US, where it will combine with Nabi to become Biota Pharmaceuticals. The new company will be listed on the Nasdaq. The proposed merger will be implemented by way of a Biota scheme of arrangement and is subject to regulatory and shareholder approval. After the completion of the merger current Biota shareholders will own about 74 percent of Biota Pharmaceuticals and Nabi shareholders will own about 26 per cent. Henderson said that Biota’s decision to delist from the ASX will provide the company with improved access to the largest healthcare capital market in the world. “Being a reverse takeover of a Nasdaq-listed US company, this is a ground-breaking transaction,” said Henderson. DLA was Biota’s US counsel while Allens was the Australian legal advisors. Clayton Utz acted as Nabi’s Australian counsel while Hogan Lovells US LLP represented them in the US.
