Noerr advises AEQUITA on carve-out and acquisition of ZF Friedrichshafen’s “Electronic Interfaces” business

With an interdisciplinary team led by Christoph Thiermann, Noerr has advised AEQUITA SE & Co. KGaA on the international carve-out and acquisition of automotive supplier ZF Friedrichshafen AG’s “Electronic Interfaces” business.

AEQUITA intends to develop the “Electronic Interfaces” product lines into an independent company with its own brand. The site in Diepholz, Germany, will be maintained as the headquarters with research & development and production. The production facilities in Shenyang (China) and Juárez (Mexico) will remain, as will the sites in Northville and El Paso (USA) and Shanghai (China). The key element of the transaction and of the advice given to the client was structuring the carve-out of the ZF Friedrichshafen business in Germany, China, Mexico and the USA, as well as reorganising the new company’s future cooperation with ZF Friedrichshafen.

AEQUITA is a Munich-based family office with many years of expertise in the automotive industry, investing in special situations such as corporate spin-offs, succession arrangements and restructuring cases throughout Europe.

ZF Friedrichshafen AG (ZF) is a global technology company headquartered in Friedrichshafen, Germany, that supplies systems for passenger cars, commercial vehicles and industrial technology, enabling the next generation of mobility. With sales of €38bn and more than 157,000 employees, ZF is one of the world’s leading automotive suppliers.

The transaction is subject to clearance by the competent antitrust authorities.

Noerr partner Christoph Thiermann regularly acts for AEQUITA, most recently in the acquisition of the Glassolutions business located in Radeburg, Germany, from Saint Gobain and the acquisition of automotive supplier Willi Elbe Group.

Advisors to AEQUITA: Noerr Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mbB

Team lead: Christoph Thiermann (partner, Private Equity, Munich)

Private Equity
Moritz Nikolaus Koch (associated partner, Hamburg)
Daniel Prexler, Manuel Weiß (senior associates, Munich)

Employment & Pensions
Benjamin Jahn (partner, Munich)

Banking & Finance
Alexander Schilling (partner, Frankfurt)

Digital Business
Felix Muhl (partner, Hamburg)
Patrick Neidinger (associated partner, Munich)

IP
Christoph Rieken (partner, Munich)

Real Estate
Christoph Hons (associated partner), Philipp König, Luca Marie Toth (associates, Frankfurt)

Antitrust & Competition
Fabian Badtke (partner), Sascha Martin Giller (associate, Frankfurt)

Tax
Elmar Bindl (partner), Steffen Arlich (senior associate, Munich)