Investment Management

De Brauw assisted Waterland Private Equity Investments (Waterland) as Dutch legal and regulatory counsel in relation to the closing of Waterland's ninth institutional flagship fund, Waterland Private Equity Fund IX ("WPEF IX") at EUR 3.5 billion, alongside Waterland Partnership Fund I ( "WPF I") at EUR 500 million. The funds closed at their respective hard caps four months after initial launch. WPEF IX will focus on investments in medium-sized companies in fragmented growth markets in Europe to finance organic and acquisitive growth. WPF I is the first fund of its kind under management of Waterland a natural extension of the Waterland platform. WPF I expects to make minority investments in a very select number of Waterland portfolio companies when these are exited.Interesting features comprised a stapled structure of multiple limited partnerships (CV's) under Dutch law and the use of feeder vehicles under Irish law. In addition to acting as Dutch legal and regulatory counsel, De Brauw also took on a coordinating role via its legal project management and data science department, with DocuSign and interactive subscription tools being used to make the fundraising process more efficient and streamlined.

De Brauw advised AEGON, a leading multinational life insurance, pensions and asset management company, on the combination of its Dutch operations with a.s.r., a leading Dutch insurance group. The deal is valued at EUR 4.9 billion. In connection with the transaction, AEGON and a.s.r. have agreed certain arrangements regarding the provision of asset management services by AEGON for the enlarged a.s.r. group and AEGON's governance rights in a.s.r., including the right to nominate initially two members to the supervisory board with one such supervisory board member having an affirmative vote for certain resolutions, including dilutive transactions and material M&A.The deal signifies a transformative transaction for both AEGON and a.s.r., creating a champion in the Dutch pension, life, and non-life insurance markets.

De Brauw acted as lead counsel to the shareholders of DataSnipper on its first venture capital funding round (Series A). DataSnipper is a tech scale-up focused on transforming the financial audit industry. It provides auditors with an intelligent automation platform to increase the quality and efficiency of audit procedures. The investment was effectuated by an offering of a minority participation to Insight Partners, a U.S.-based global software investor partnering with high-growth technology, software and internet start-up and scale-up companies that are driving transformative change in their industries.

Draft anti-money laundering legislation has been submitted to the lower house in the Netherlands: (i) limiting cash handled by traders in goods to EUR 3,000, (ii) enabling banks to outsource transaction monitoring and (iii) requiring AML-regulated institutions to exchange client information in high-risk situations.

Legislation introducing UBO identification requirements for trusts and funds for joint account (fondsen voor gemene rekening) will soon enter into force. The UBO register for these entities as kept by the Chamber of Commerce in the Netherlands will become operational as per 1 November 2022.

Legislation introducing UBO identification requirements for trusts and funds for joint account (fondsen voor gemene rekening) will enter into force. The Implementation Decree has been published with an implementation date to follow. A UBO register kept by the Chamber of Commerce in the Netherlands is expected to become operational later this year.