Locations
Fieldfisher’s UK and French equity capital markets (ECM) teams recorded an excellent 2021, advising on transactions for companies listed on the London and Paris capital markets with a combined value in excess of £4.2 billion (€5 billion).
The firm’s deal tally was boosted by its market-leading reputation as a legal adviser to AIM and Euronext Growth Paris Market-listed companies seeking comprehensive capital markets expertise, and by the wider resurgence in capital markets activity as clients regained confidence and the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic began to subside.
Led by Head of Equity Capital Markets Brad Isaac, in 2021 the firm acted on:
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18 IPOs (13 in London and 5 in Paris) with a combined market cap of £1.89 billion (€2.27 billion);
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29 ECM secondary issues (23 in London and 6 in Paris) raising c.£1.1 billion (€1.3 billion); and
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35 M&A deals with a combined acquisition value of more than £600 million (€721 million).
In the UK, as of January 2022, Fieldfisher is ranked as the leading legal adviser to FTSE AIM 100 companies, with 8 clients in this bracket.
The firm ended 2021 with 54 AIM-listed clients in total, having added 5 new issuer clients to its roster in the final quarter of the year, ranking Fieldfisher second overall by number of AIM clients according to the AIM Advisers Rankings Guide.
Fieldfisher advised on 13 (10%) of the 126 IPOs completed across the London markets last year, and advised on capital markets transactions raising a total of £1.3 billion, representing approximately 15% of the £9 billion raised in IPO and follow-on capital on AIM in 2021.
The average value of ECM secondary issues advised on by the UK team in 2021 was £41 million.
Fieldfisher also retained its strong relationships with the UK broker community in 2021, advising multiple brokers in their capacities as nomads and bookrunners on several significant transactions, particularly in respect of life sciences and healthcare deals.
French capital markets activity
Fieldfisher’s Paris capital markets team also had an outstanding year, completing transactions including 5 IPOs and 6 capital increases on the Euronext Growth Paris Market for a total amount of €600 million.
Led by capital markets partner Samuel Pallotto, as of January 2022 Fieldfisher's Paris equity capital markets team now advises 17 listed companies in France and has established its position as a key player in the small and mid-cap market for public companies and demonstrated its ability to assist businesses looking to finance growth through the French financial markets.
Commenting on Fieldfisher's ECM performance in 2021, Head of Equity Capital Markets Brad Isaac said:
"Last year was certainly a bounce-back year for ECM activity, after the disruption and uncertainty of 2020.
"As in previous years, Fieldfisher's deal activity was particularly strong in its focus sectors of technology, energy and natural resources and life sciences across the London and Paris markets.
"We look forward to another busy and successful year in 2022 and to continuing to strengthen our issuer and broker client base."
For a full breakdown of Fieldfisher's ECM deal activity 2021 and our analysis of key sectors, download a copy of our ECM Wrap 2021.
About Fieldfisher
Fieldfisher is a European law firm built around its people. We are a full-service firm with market-leading practices in energy and natural resources, technology, financial services and life sciences.
Our network of more than 1,700 expert people spans 25 offices in 11 countries, including our US and China locations, acting alongside our international partner firms, enabling us to advise clients around the world with seamless efficiency and dedication across time zones and disciplines.
A Times Top 20 Law Firm, we are highly commended by the European Financial Times Innovative Lawyers rankings and repeatedly nominated for awards in areas including dispute resolution, public and regulatory, M&A and IP.
Our lawyers are consistently recognised by legal directories as leading professionals in their areas of specialism and we are ranked tier 1 or 2 in a number of our key practice areas.
For more information about our firm, please see: About | Fieldfisher.