Khaitan & Co has advised JSW Paints on its INR 9,403 crore acquisition of 74.76 percent stake in Dutch paint maker Akzo Nobel‘s Indian arm, Akzo Nobel India, in what will be India’s largest deal in paints and coatings sector, amid a race to capture market share through buyouts. Trilegal represented Azko Nobel N.V. on the deal.
The acquisition will also trigger a mandatory open offer for 25.24 percent of shares held by the public shareholders.
Azko owns the Dulux brand, in a market that has seen intense competition and price volatility, as paint-makers look at inorganic growth strategies to capture the market. Aditya Birla Group was the latest entrant into the market last year, following the launch of Birla Opus, eating into Asian Paints’ market share.
The paints and coatings sector is in a growth surge, amid a rise in infrastructure and real estate developments, with estimates pegging it at $16 billion by 2030, from its $10 billion estimate today, as per Mordor Intelligence.
With this acquisition, JSW Paints becomes the fourth largest player in the segment, dominated by Asian Paints, Berger Paints, and Kansai Nerolac, Reuters reported.
Khaitan’s deal team was led by partner Shishir Jose Vayttaden and comprised partner Abhishek Dadoo, principal associates Surbhi Ajitsaria and Jayantika Khanna, senior associates Riya Sharma and Gaurang Mansinghka and associates Gitika Lahiri, Harishankar Raghunath and Niyati Karia.
They were assisted by partners Nirupam Lodha (IP), Manisha Shroff, Arijit Sarkar and Mohit Kishore (financing and diligence), Anisha Chand (antitrust), Avnish Sharma, Gaurav Dasgupta and Sudheer Madamaiah (real estate), Supratim Chakraborty (data privacy) and Vinay Joy (employment).
The Trilegal deal team was led by partners Yogesh Singh, Sumi Saikia, and Ankush Goyal and included counsel Prarthna Baranwal, senior associates Amit Nain, Nikhil Issar, Natansh Jain, Pallav Gupta, Shiluti Walling, Nabarun Ray, and Suyash Bhamore, and associates Praduta Singh and Sakshi Sharma.
Trilegal partners Sadaf Shaikh (real estate), Kirti Balasubramanian (IP), Kunal Gupta and Siddharth Gupta (white collar), Swarnima (employment), Himanshu Sinha and Komal Dani (tax), Gautam Chawla (antitrust), Jyotsna Jayaram (TMT), Bhakta Patnaik (capital markets), Rajat Jariwal (environmental law), and Sampath Kumar (corporate governance and compliance) assisted on the deal.
