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Annabelle Croker

Partner

Email

annabelle.croker@aoshearman.com

Phone

+44 20 3088 3220

Offices

London

V-CARD
Annabelle is Consumer & Retail Sector Lead.

She has significant experience of advising on merger and acquisition transactions, including public takeovers (both recommended and hostile), private acquisitions and disposals including a number of cross-border transactions, joint ventures, reorganisations and equity capital market transactions.

She advises listed companies on general corporate and governance matters.

Annabelle acts for a number of FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and other international corporates. She is Lead of Consumer & Retail but also advises clients in the Industrials, Tech and Real Estate sectors. Annabelle has spent time on secondment to the Hong Kong office and also on secondment to the Investment Banking Division of a major U.S. investment bank. 

Expertise

Industries

Experience

Representative matters

  • WPP on the USD3.1bn sale of a majority stake in Kantar to Bain Capital.
  • SIG on the sale of its Air Handling division to France Air Management.
  • TT Electronics on the sale of its Transportation Sensing and Control division to AVX Corporation.
  • OpenText on its USD6bn recommended takeover of Micro Focus International.
  • 888 Holdings on its GBP898m contested cash and share offer for bwin.party digital entertainment.
  • Kingfisher on its acquisition of the business and assets of the CDSL Group.
  • TT Electronics on its 6.1% cash placing of new shares on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and on its recommended public takeover of Stadium Group.
  • SIG on its GBP165m equity capital raise and sale of a stake to CD&R.
  • A global information technology company on its acquisition of the HyperX gaming business from Kingston Technology Company.
  • Premier Farnell on the GBP615m contested offer by Datwyler Holding and the GBP691m recommended takeover by Avnet.
  • Computer Sciences Corporation on its successful GBP480m contested recommended takeover of Xchanging.
  • Kildare Partners and Curzon Advisors on the acquisition of a portfolio of European real estate assets from Karlin Real Estate.
  • A global pharmaceutical and healthcare company on its GBP1.6bn recommended takeover of AZ Electronics Materials.
  • A global financial institution and a leading private equity fund on the acquisition from Commerzbank of the London Branch of Hypothekenbank Frankfurt AG (formerly, Eurohypo) for GBP4bn.
  • A global financial institution on the sale of its European real estate loan servicing business to Mount Street.
  • ING Group on the EUR1.3bn sale of its Malaysian insurance business to pan-Asian life insurer AIA and on the EUR1.64bn sale of its insurance businesses in Thailand and Hong Kong to Pacific Century Group. 
  • Cobham on its GBP270m hostile public takeover of Thrane & Thrane A/S.

Pro bono

  • Mentoring young people through the firm's award-winning Smart Start programme.

Recognition

“Annabelle Croker is a top notch professional who is unflappable under pressure and always warm and a pleasure to deal with.”
Legal 500 UK 2022 (M&A: Upper Mid-Market and Premium deals, £500m+)
“The "wonderful" Annabelle Croker. ”
Legal 500 UK 2023 (M&A: Upper Mid Market and Premium deals, £750m+)

Awards

  • Annabelle was shortlisted as a “Rising Star in Corporate” at the Euromoney Women in Business Awards 2016
  • Annabelle was shortlisted for “Dealmaker of the Year” at the Women in Law Awards 2020

Qualifications

Admissions

Admitted as solicitor, England and Wales, 2006

Academic

MA, Law with European Studies, Oxford University, 2002
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Disclaimer
A&O Shearman was formed on May 1, 2024 by the combination of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Allen & Overy LLP and their respective affiliates (the legacy firms). Any matters referred to above may include matters undertaken by one or more of the legacy firms rather than A&O Shearman.