Vinge in the lead despite market downturn

Vinge in the lead despite market downturn Vinge tops mergermarket's ranking list of legal counsel advising on Nordic M&A transactions during the first nine months of 2002. Two Vinge lawyers are among the five individual counsel most frequently engaged. The Nordic market for M&A transactions involving values in excess of SEK 150 million has followed the international pattern. According to mergermarket's statistics, there has been a decrease of some 50 % as compared with 2001. Vinge remains the firm most frequently engaged in connection with large M&A transactions, and the list of individual names is again topped by Vinge partner Johan Cervin, who headed the full-year lists for 2000 and 2001, with partner Christoffer Saidac ranked as no. 4. - Naturally, we are very happy that Vinge and several of our lawyers remain in pole position within the Nordic M&A market - which is an attractive market, says Michael Wigge, Managing Partner of Vinge's Stockholm office. - It is also interesting to note that the substantial decline within M&A in the US and Europe, including the Nordic region, has not led to a corresponding decrease in the overall demand for our services. Vinge has for instance acted on all listings on the Stockholm Stock Exchange which have taken place during the year. Reconstructions - in particular in the telecoms sector - and property transactions are areas where we have also seen an increase, Michael Wigge continues. The transactions on which Vinge has been advising include GE Capital's purchase of ABB Structured Finance for a purchase price exceeding EUR 21 million. The transaction, which was designated "Deal of the Week" by The Lawyer, saw Vinge acting alongside Clifford Chance LLP. Vinge's team consisted of partners Bo Adrianzon and Fredrik Wilkens and, among others, associates Maria-Pia Midenbäck Hope and Mikael Ståhl. Vinge is also assisting Icelandic Kaupthing Bank in connection with its bid for JP Nordiska. In the earlier part of the year, Vinge advised German company Infineon Technologies in connection with its acquisition of Ericsson's Microelectronics division. - We believe that recent events such as accounting scandals and increased uncertainty will lead to a continued increase in the need for top-quality legal services. Independence, security and business ethics are at the very core of what we can offer our clients, and I am confident about Vinge being well equipped to meet the demands of the market also in this regard, says Hans Wibom, chairman of Vinge. Vinge is one of Scandinavia's largest law firms offering a full range of legal services with a focus on M&A and Corporate Finance. Today the worldwide staff exceeds 445, of which over 275 are lawyers. _______________________ For further information, please contact Michael Wigge, tel. +46-8-614 30 56, +46-70-714 30 56, e-mail michael.wigge@vinge.se, or Fredrik von Baumgarten, tel. +46-8-614 3107, +46-70-714 3107, e-mail fredrik.baumgarten@vinge.se. mergermarket is an English company which compiles information of company acquisitions and other transactions in the European market on a continuous basis. For further information, visit www.mergermarket.com. mergermarket league table (by volume) of legal advisors advising in transactions in Northern Europe for 9 months ending September 30 2002 Rank Company Name Number of Deals 1 Vinge 20 2 Mannheimer Swartling 18 3 Linklaters 15 4 Hannes Snellman 13 5 White & Case 11 6 Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer 9 7 Allen & Overy 9 8 Clifford Chance 9 9 Skadden Arps 7 10 Slaughter and May 5 mergermarket league table (by volume) of individual lawyers advising in transactions in Northern Europe for 9 months ending September 30 2002 Rank Deal Count Name Company Name 1 5 Johan Cervin Vinge 2 4 Petri Haussila White & Case 3 4 Tuomo Vahapassi Hannes Snellman 4 4 Christoffer Saidac Vinge 5 3 George Sampas Sullivan & Cromwell ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/10/11/20021011BIT00220/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/10/11/20021011BIT00220/wkr0002.pdf