Norton Rose Fulbright advises Dradura Group on sale to FMC Beteiligungs KG

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Dradura Group on its successful restructuring and acquisition by FMC Beteiligungs KG as part of an international investor process. FMC Beteiligungs KG, a medium-sized, entrepreneur-led investment company, has taken over the operational business of Dradura Group with effect from July 1, 2021.

In August 2020, Dradura Holding filed for a protective shield to open insolvency proceedings in self-administration. The management team led by Peter Brauer (CFO) and Matthias Kreye (CEO) was supported in this by the fully authorised self-administrator Dr Sebastian Braun in terms of insolvency law. Jörg Heus (Dipl.-Ing.) and Daniel Mann (Dipl.-Wirtsch.-Ing.) provided business management advice in the context of the out-of-court and judicial restructuring. Rüdiger Weiß was appointed as the trustee. In November 2020, insolvency proceedings were filed for the assets of Dradura Beteiligungs GmbH, which held foreign investments of the Dradura Group. Attorney Thomas Oberle was appointed as insolvency administrator. In the following months, business has developed positively, also due to the current high demand for household appliances and products for the furniture industry, which are the key industrial sectors for the group. FMC will now continue to develop the group of companies sustainably and in the long term from its locations in Germany, Italy, Poland and the USA.

Dradura is one of the leading international manufacturers of wire products. The company supplies a wide range of industries with industrially shaped, robust and high-quality wire products. Its most important customers include manufacturers of household appliances, well-known furniture retailers and medical technology companies. Following the final takeover, the medium-sized company has sites in Germany, Italy, Poland and the USA and around 1,000 employees worldwide. Since October 2020, Norton Rose Fulbright had advised the Dradura Group on an international investor process aimed at finding a sustainable solution by means of an insolvency plan or individual sale within the framework of self-administration proceedings.

FMC Beteiligungs KG has many years of cross-sector experience in the transformation and further development of business models. FMC aims to make sustainable investments and differentiates itself from many other investment companies in that it does not pursue a sales strategy, but instead holds and develops its investments in the portfolio over the long term.

"We are pleased that we were able to advise the Dradura Group in its reorganisation under the difficult conditions of the pandemic and successfully conclude the international investor process initiated in autumn 2020. The future of a renowned German hidden champion has been secured," explains Frankfurt partner Dr Sylwia Maria Bea, who was in charge of advising on the restructuring. "With the new owner FMC, Dradura has found an ideal investor who opens up very good entrepreneurial development prospects for the group. The international team has led this complex, cross-border transaction to success with great commitment," adds lead Munich partner Dr Philipp Grzimek.

The Norton Rose Fulbright team was led by Frankfurt partner Dr Sylwia Maria Bea (restructuring) and Munich partner Dr Philipp Grzimek (M&A/private equity). They were supported by partners Tino Duttiné (tax), Dr Christoph Ritzer (data protection and IT), Dr Tim Schaper (antitrust), Dr Hendrik Theismann (real estate) and Daniel Marschollek (IP) as well as Paris partner Philippe Hameau (restructuring). Also involved were counsel Claudia Posluschny (employment), Michael Mehler (real estate) and Stefan Kutscheid (corporate/M&A), senior associates Johannes Diez (corporate/M&A), Stefanie Grosche-Radina (employment) and Julia Gallinger (tax) as well as associates Anna-Maria Baorda (restructuring), Alexander Mathes (corporate/M&A), Sören Räthling (antitrust), Michaela Zenkert (employment), Sarah Heufelder (tax) and Guillaume Rudelle (restructuring, Paris).

The management of Dradura GmbH & Co KG around Mr Peter Brauer and Mr Matthias Kreye was supported in this by the general authorised self-administrator Dr Sebastian Braun in terms of insolvency law. AMBG Adiutor Management- und Beratungsgesellschaft mbH provided business management advice.

The banking pool was advised by the Munich and Frankfurt office of the law firm Taylor Wessing. The buyer side was advised by the Düsseldorf law firm Lambrecht, the Munich and Hamburg offices of the law firm Hogan Lovells, Gleiss Lutz in Frankfurt and RSM GmbH in Bremen. PwC Pricewaterhouse Coopers acted as M&A advisor for the transaction.