Alex Potter

Profil Alex Potter

Alex is a partner in the firm’s antitrust, competition and trade group. 

Clients turn to him for strategic, commercially focused advice on complex transactions and antitrust investigations.

His experience of working in London, Brussels and Beijing – and of regularly co-ordinating antitrust strategy across multiple jurisdictions – enables him to offer a truly international perspective.

In addition to obtaining merger approvals and helping clients through cartel and abuse-of-dominance investigations, Alex also advises on state aid law, utility regulation and distribution arrangements.

He has experience across a wide range of industries, with particular expertise in consumer products, entertainment, defence, industrials, financial services, technology platforms and pharmaceuticals.

Alex is based in London and often works out of Brussels. In 2008/09, he spent 18 months in Beijing jointly leading our China antitrust practice, and headed our response to the introduction of China’s anti-monopoly law. 

Alex speaks English and French.

Mandate

Alex's experience includes advising:

• Yokohama Rubber on obtaining unconditional phase I merger approvals from the European Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for its €2.1bn acquisition of Trelleborg Wheel Systems, a manufacturer of off-highway tyres for agricultural and industrial machinery.
• Parker-Hannifin on the global merger control and foreign investment clearances for its £6.3bn public offer for Meggitt, a manufacturer of aerospace and defence motion and control technologies, including obtaining EU and UK phase I merger clearances subject to competition remedies, with further national security remedies and economic undertakings given to the UK Government.
• Cargotec on its proposed merger with Konecranes in the cargo handling industry to create a combined group with sales of €7bn, involving the first parallel phase 2 review of a transaction by the CMA and the European Commission.
• A third party on its interventions in the parallel phase 2 reviews by the CMA and the European Commission in relation to the proposed $40bn acquisition by NVIDIA of Arm, which was subsequently abandoned by the parties.
• Auction Technology Group on the global merger control aspects of its $525m acquisition of LiveAuctioneers, a North American online Arts & Antiques marketplace, including obtaining unconditional phase 1 clearance from the CMA.

• Flutter Entertainment on its £10bn merger with The Stars Group to create a leading online gaming group, obtaining unconditional phase 1 clearance from the CMA and coordinating the global merger control and foreign investment filings effort.

• PepsiCo on its $1.7bn public bid for Pioneer Food Group, one of the largest South African producers of branded food and beverage products, including obtaining unconditional phase 1 UK clearance from the CMA and coordinating other ex-Africa merger filings.

• The Connect Bidco consortium (Apax, Warburg Pincus, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board) on obtaining UK Government approval, subject to national security undertakings, for its £2.6bn public bid for Inmarsat, a global satellite telecommunications provider.

• BAE Systems on the creation of a land systems joint venture with Rheinmetall through the sale of a majority interest in its UK-based armoured combat vehicles business, including obtaining unconditional phase 1 clearance from the CMA.
• Mars on obtaining phase I approval subject to remedies from the European Commission in relation to the acquisition of AniCura, a European group of animal hospitals and clinics, and the subsequent sale of AniCura’s VetFamily procurement platform to Fidelio Capital; and on its acquisition of Linnaeus, a UK veterinary services group.

• JAB on the global merger control aspects, including obtaining phase I EU merger clearance, of its acquisition of leading ready-to-eat food chain Pret A Manger, and the subsequent acquisition of UK food and drink retailer EAT. 

• Smiths Group on its $710m acquisition of Morpho Detection, a detection and security solutions company, cleared subject to remedies after a phase I review by the European Commission; and subsequent $75.5m sale of Morpho Detection’s explosive trace detection business to OSI Systems.

• Sysco on obtaining unconditional phase I clearance from the European Commission for its $3.1bn purchase of Brakes Group, a leading European foodservice distributor.

• JAB and Coty on their $12.5bn acquisition of Procter & Gamble’s fine fragrance, colour cosmetics and hair colour businesses, cleared unconditionally at phase I by the European Commission.

• A large investment bank on investigations around the world into allegations of manipulation of the foreign exchange markets. 

• JAB and D.E. Master Blenders 1753 (DEMB) on the combination of DEMB with the coffee business of Mondelēz International to form Jacobs Douwe Egberts, a pure-play coffee company with annual revenues of more than €5bn, cleared subject to conditions by the European Commission after a phase II review.