Freshfields steers Croda´s €820m acquisition of Iberchem

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has advised British chemical company Croda on its acquisition of Spain´s Iberchem for €820 million

Croda International, the speciality chemical company that uses smart science to create high-performance ingredients and technologies that improve lives, and Spain´s Iberchem, a leading global fragrances and flavours company, have reached an agreement in which Croda will acquire Iberchem, for €820 million on a debt-free, cash-free basis. Iberchem has been majority-owned by French investment firm Eurazeo since 2017.

The complementary operations of the two companies, combined with an ambitious growth synergy programme, is set to create additional value for customers. Many customers require both ingredients and fragrances and can expect to benefit from collaborative thinking and full formulation development made possible by this acquisition.

Iberchem will remain an independent entity with extensive support from Croda, continuing to serve its customers while collaborating with Croda teams on cross-selling and other revenue synergy opportunities.

Freshfields acted for Croda with a cross-border team led from the Madrid office that included teams from the London and Paris offices. The Madrid office team was led by Corporate partner and Madrid office managing partner David Franco (pictured left) and Finance partner Iñaki Gabilondo, and included Corporate senior associate Carla Gómez, Finance senior associate Antonio Ramírez, together with Corporate associates Mario Pacini, Laura Cue and Ignacio Baena, and Finance associates Domènec Casañ and Cristina de la Puente.