TOM THESING is the managing partner of Sidley’s office in London, co-head of the London Corporate group and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. His principal areas of practice are cross-border M&A, corporate finance and strategic counseling/corporate governance. Tom represents both buyers and sellers of public and private corporations and advises boards of directors on acquisitions, corporate and financial restructuring and corporate governance-related matters. He also has experience with private equity/venture capital investments and joint ventures. Tom has significant experience in transactions in regulated industries, such as financial and payment services, healthcare and life sciences, as well as technology and internet-related businesses. Recognized most for his cross-border experience, virtually all of the transactions Tom leads include parties and businesses in multiple jurisdictions and most frequently across continents, whether North or South America, Europe, Asia or Africa.
Tom’s recent transactions include advising:
- Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company on its acquisition of a shareholding in Rothesay Life.
- RoundTable Healthcare Partners in its agreement with Moberg Pharma AB, listed on the main list at NASDAQ OMX Stockholm, to acquire Moberg’s global consumer health business and to fund an equity investment and loan into Moberg Pharma’s MOB-015 development program.
- eBay on its acquisition of Motors.co.uk, to join Gumtree UK, a part of eBay’s classifieds group.
- F. Hoffmann-La Roche on its acquisition of Tusk Therapeutics, a UK-based pre-clinical immuno-oncology company which has developed an antibody with a novel mode of action aimed at depleting regulatory T-cells.
- TransUnion on its acquisition of Callcredit, which was recently named “Private Equity Deal of the Year (Over $1B)” by The M&A Advisor at the 11th Annual International M&A Awards.
- eBay on its acquisition of Ticketbis SA, an international ticket marketplace company headquartered in Spain.
- Northern Trust Corporation on its acquisition of UBS’s fund administration business in Switzerland and Luxembourg.
- Donnelley Financial Solutions on the sale of its language solutions business to SDL plc.
- Archer Daniels Midland on its acquisition of Probiotics International Limited, a UK-based provider of probiotic supplements for human, pet and production-animal use.
Tom has been recognized for Corporate/M&A work in a number of leading legal publications, including IFLR 1000, The Legal 500 UK, Chambers Global and Chambers UK. Most recently, Tom was recognized in Chambers UK 2021, with clients commenting “his subject matter expertise and holistic understanding of transactions is fantastic.” In the 2018 edition of Chambers UK, clients describe Tom as being a “very technical and practical partner,” and client comments in The Legal 500 UK 2017 note that he is a “‘very tough negotiator.’” Tom has also been recognized as a “Life Science Star” for finance and transactional matters in the LMG Life Sciences Europe guide.