In a bid to bolster its analytics services and make further inroads into China and India, U.S. rating agency Moody’s Corporation recently acquired majority stake in outsourced research and analytics provider Copal Partners.
NYSE-listed Moody’s was advised on this complex cross-border deal by London-headquartered international law firm Slaughter and May as lead counsel, and offshore law firm Conyers Dill Pearman. Copal Partners, meanwhile, had engaged U.S. law firm Proskauer Rose, Jersey legal services counsel Carey Olsen, and Indian law firm Amarchand & Mangaldas among many other firms.
The transaction encompassed various jurisdictions spanning across the U.S., Jersey, Argentina, China, Cyprus, Hong Kong, India, Mauritius, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates.
Under the deal, Copal will be integrated into Moody’s Analytics Professional Services unit. The transaction is expected to enhance the rating agency’s research, data, software and educational services. It will also leverage on Copal’s client base in Western Europe.
“This acquisition extends Moody’s Analytics’ capabilities which will enable us to better help financial institutions manage risk,” said Mark Almeida, president of Moody’s Analytics in a press statement on Nov. 14. “Copal’s expertise and resources will allow us to accelerate innovation across Moody’s Analytics,” he said.
Slaughter and May’s global team was led by corporate partner Michael Corbett, while Conyers’ Mauritius-based associate Sameer Tegally provided Mauritian corporate and regulatory advisory on the transaction.
On the seller side, the Proskauer team was headed by Daniel Ganitsky, a partner in its mergers and acquisitions group and Latin America group. Amarchand’s team, meanwhile, was led by senior advisor Nanda Shah and corporate partner Tushar Mavani.
Citibank and Ernst & Young were the buyer’s financial advisors, while the target engaged Centerview Partners and Macquarie Capital.
Copal was founded in 2002, and has more than 1,300 people working across its offices in Beijing, Dubai, Gurgaon, Hong Kong, London, Mauritius and New York. In the financial year ending March 2011, its annual revenue was $50 million. ALB
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