Macfarlanes Acted on Ancala's Strategic Partnership with Vontobel, Accelerating Growth

Macfarlanes Acted on Ancala's Strategic Partnership with Vontobel, Accelerating Growth

Macfarlanes, a leading UK law firm, has successfully advised long-standing client Ancala, a prominent independent infrastructure manager, on the sale of a minority stake to Vontobel, a global investment firm. This strategic move fuels Ancala's growth plans and empowers them to continue delivering superior returns from essential infrastructure assets.

Founded in 2010, Ancala boasts a consistent strategy, delivering strong returns from traditional infrastructure investments. Their unique approach involves sourcing bilateral deals, offering downside protection, inflation-linked returns, and cash yield, while fostering sustainable value in their portfolio companies. Currently, Ancala manages €4 billion+ in assets across 18 critical infrastructure sectors like renewable energy, transportation, utilities, and the circular economy.

Swiss-rooted Vontobel specialises in wealth management, active asset management, and investment solutions, holding over €313 billion in client assets. Their investment will empower Ancala to continue delivering value from crucial infrastructure assets.

Ancala's management team under Managing Partner Spence Clunie will retain full independence over investment and governance processes.

This development comes after Macfarlanes' successful closing of Ancala's third flagship fund, securing €1.4 billion, exceeding its target. Additionally, Ancala raised £551 million for its Growth Fund, made six investments exceeding €700 million in total enterprise value, and expanded its workforce by 20 per cent.

The transaction, subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close by Q3 2024.

The Macfarlanes team, led by corporate and M&A partner Jessica Adam, included Lauren Bretton (senior counsel), Alice Temkin and Andrew Wheelhouse (senior associates), and Charlotte Cato (associate). Private funds expertise came from Stephen Robinson (partner) and Sweta Tandle (senior associate). Tax advice was provided by Mark Baldwin (senior advisor) and Jack Slater (associate), while competition and financial services regulation advice were offered by Richard Pepper (partner), Andrew Morrison (senior associate), Michael Sholem (partner), and Rachael Preston (senior associate), respectively.