Daniel Hurstel is senior counsel in the Corporate & Financial Services Department. He serves as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Daniel has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions/capital markets, group restructurings, joint ventures, IPOs, corporate governance and the creation of a wide variety of financial instruments.
Daniel represents French and foreign companies in France. His clients include large French and international corporate and financial institutions and LBO funds.
Daniel was honored with the 2009 World Finance Legal Award for "Best M&A Lawyer - France," and Chambers Europe (2020) and Chambers Global (2020) rank him among the leading individuals practicing Corporate/M&A Law in France.
M&A
Daniel’s representative M&A transactions include advising:
- FFP on its contemplated acquisition of a minority interest in International SOS, a worldwide leader in health and security services
- Bpifrance in connection with
- its €1.92 billion acquisition of a 12.7 percent stake in French automaker Peugeot SA
- Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot SA’s subsequent agreement to merge, creating the world’s fourth largest automaker
- CMA CGM Group on various transactions, including:
- the acquisition of Container Finance’s container shipping and logistics business Containerships
- the acquisition of an approximate 25% stake in CEVA Logistics AG, and the subsequent successful completion of its friendly public tender offer of CEVA
- the sale to the EQT Infrastructure III fund of a 90 percent stake in APL Limited, whose wholly owned subsidiary, Eagle Marine Services, Ltd., operates Global Gateway South, a leading container terminal in the Port of Los Angeles
- the acquisition of Mercosul Line from Maersk Line
- the acquisition of Neptune Orient Lines
- the acquisition via its freight forwarding subsidiary of a strategic stake in India’s LCL Logistix
- the sale of a 49% stake in its wholly owned subsidiary Terminal Link to China Merchants Holdings International
- the sale of a 50% stake in Malta Freeport Terminals Limited to Yildirim
- the investment in CMA CGM of $600 million by the Yildirim Türkish group
- the investment in CMA CGM of €150 million by the FSI (French Sovereign Fund - Fonds Stratégique d’Investissement), as well as:
- the restructuring of its indebtedness
- Flex-N-Gate in its acquisition of seven European plants from France-based Plastic Omnium
- GL Events in its acquisition of Expo Indus
- Italian pharmaceutical company Recordati in connection with the acquisition of Orphan Europe (€120 million)
- Tocqueville Finance SA in connection with the reorganization of its shareholdings
- Thales on various transactions, including
- the purchase of the Helmet Mounted Display (HMD) and Motion Tracking Businesses of Gentex Corporation
- the sale of its e-Transactions business lines to Hypercom ($120 million)
- its $2.2 billion agreement to purchase the satellite activities, transport signaling and critical infrastructure protection of Alcatel SA
- EADS, the largest European defense company, on various acquisitions, disposals and joint venues
- German lab-equipment maker Sartorius AG in its agreement to purchase a controlling stake in French peer Stedim SA and to combine into the latter its biotechnology division
- The investors (funds advised by CVC Capital Partners, Advent and Carlyle) for the LBO of Lafarge Matériaux de Spécialités, now called Matéris
- Lazard Frères and CAI for the sale of Saint-Gobain’s stake in Essilor and counsel to CAI for a rights offering for Euro Disney
- Advisor to Bloomberg with respect to regulatory issues relating to trading activities in Europe
Private Equity
Daniel’s representative Private Equity transactions include advising:
- Memo Bank (f/k/a Margo Bank) on the $22.5 million funding round and obtaining subsequent credit institution license
- Captain Train in its acquisition by KKR portfolio company Trainline, combining the #1 independent rail ticket retailers in the UK and Continental Europe
- CMA CGM Group for the sale of La Compagnie du Ponant, its boutique luxury cruise line, to Bridgepoint
- Goldman Sachs, Colony Capital and Merchant Equity Partners in connection with their acquisition of But, the French furniture and electricals business of Kesa Plc (€550 million)
- Wendel in its sale of Editis to Grupo Planeta (€1 billion), and in its acquisition of a majority interest in Constantia Flexibles (valuing Constantia Flexibles at €2.3 billion)
Capital Markets
- CMA CGM Group:
- in its €1.05 billion loan arranged by a consortium of three banks (BNP Paribas, HSBC and Société Générale) as part of France's state-guaranteed loan scheme established in response to the COVID-19 pandemic
- for the placement of $945 million equivalent senior notes composed of $475 million of 8.5% dollar-nominated Senior Notes due 2017 and €325 million of 8.875% euro-denominated Senior Notes due 2019
- in the context of a $200 million (with $600 million extension option) multi-jurisdictions new securitization program put in place by Nord LB and Finacity
- Counsel to Ingenico in its friendly tender offer for all outstanding shares of XIRING
- Counsel to Paris-based toll roads company Groupe APRR SA in the $3.7 billion IPO sponsored by the French government
- Bpifrance:
- in connection with Vallourec’s €1 billion equity fundraising
- in connection with Vallourec's €800 million capital increase
Daniel is Chair of the Legal Committee of the IFA (Institut Français des Administrateurs) and a member of the Royal Academy of Belgium.
Daniel was appointed Co-Chair of the Capital Markets Forum of the International Bar Association. He was also appointed to serve as a member of the Consultative Working Group charged with assisting the European "Expert Group" on the drafting of the European directive on Prospectus and Disclosure Requirements set up by the CESR (Committee of European Securities Regulators).
Daniel frequently speaks and writes on corporate and securities matters. He is the co-author of a chapter on private equity in France in a treatise entitled Private Equity - Jurisdictional Comparisons, published by the European Lawyer Reference Series (2010), and previously served as a senior lecturer on "Legal Aspects of International Mergers & Acquisitions" at the Institute of Political Studies (Maître de conférence à Sciences-Po)