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Bart Vanderstraete
Partner
Bart Vanderstraete is a partner in our Brussels office and leads our Corporate team in Belgium. His practice covers a broad range of Belgian and international corporate work, including M&A, private equity and general commercial matters. Bart also has extensive experience in the area of Belgian data protection law.
Bart has almost two decades of experience advising on major Belgian and cross-border transactions. He has in-depth knowledge of the ports sector and the global chemicals and materials sector, advising international chemicals manufacturers on a full range of corporate and commercial issues.
Following outstanding client feedback, Bart was named as a star lawyer in the Acritas StarsTM global database, 2018: Bart “brings a very good understanding to the regulatory side of Belgian transactions and he is very good at explaining the complexities of foreign laws to those of us in the UK.”
- Advising HomeServe Belgium on the acquisition of Hainaut Chauffage, the first Belgian acquisition of an HVAC business of the HomeServe group.
- Advising Primo Water Group on the acquisition of SipWell.
- Advising Deltek Denmark A/S, a subsidiary of Roper Technologies Inc., on the acquisition of SBSA BV, a software company that developed a product called Archisnapper, which provides high-tech software solutions to architects and related building professionals.
- Advising the Bridgestone group on the divestment of its Firestone Building Products business to LafargeHolcim for an enterprise value of US$3.4 billion.
- Advising investment fund The Craftory on its €22 million investment in Edgard & Coopers, a sustainable pet food brand headquartered in Belgium and active in seven European jurisdictions.
- Acting for CPL Industries, the UK’s largest coal merchant and wholesaler, on the acquisition of Kolengroothandel Gysen NV and Antraco NV from the Van Pelt group.
- Advising Robert McBride Limited and McBride SA on the sale of personal care liquids manufacturing businesses to Royal Sanders (UK) Ltd and Royal Sanders (Belgium) BVBA.
- Advising Animalcare Group plc on its reverse acquisition of Ecuphar NV and related placing.
- Acting for Low & Bonar on the sale of its agro-textiles business to IFG Exelto. The disposal will comprise the sale of the main assets of the agro-textiles business in both Europe and the US, including Low & Bonar’s factory in Lokeren, Belgium, and its inventory.
- Advising private equity funds Sagard and Ergon Capital on the acquisition of the Corialis group and the subsequent sale of the group to funds backed by Advent.
- Advising management of the Corialis group on the reinvestment in the buy-out backed by Advent funds.
- Advising PSA Antwerp on all aspects relating to the strategic relocation of one of Europe’s largest container terminals from the right bank of the river Scheldt to the left bank, including on the new joint venture with shipping group MSC.
- Advising SABIC on the joint venture with Mitsubishi Rayon Corporation for the development of a US$1 billion MMA/PMMA plant in the Middle East.
- Advising the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), the investment arm of the Saudi government, on the acquisition of a 38% stake in Posco Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd. for US$1.1 billion. This was PIF’s first significant outbound investment.
- Advising SABIC on the joint venture with VOPAK to develop the new petrochemicals port in Jubail, Saudi Arabia.
Education
- Institut d'Etudes Européennes (ULB), Masters, European Law, 1999
- University of Antwerp, M.A., 1998
Admissions
- Brussels, 1999
Languages
- English
- French
- Dutch
- Recognized in The Legal 500 Europe, Middle East & Africa 2019 for Belgium – Commercial, Corporate and M&A
- Recommended by IFLR as a Leading Lawyer – Highly regarded for Corporate/M&A
- The Corporate/M&A Practice of the Brussels office is recognized by The Legal 500 as a leading Belgian practice