Distressed M&A

Distressed companies may be attractive acquisition targets as their price often reflects the difficulties the company faces. Our services in distressed M&A consist of integrated corporate, finance, tax and competition law advice and deal structuring, including providing corporate governance advice tailored to the unique environment of a distressed company, out-of-court asset and share deals, acquisition of companies or assets in pre-bankruptcy and bankruptcy proceedings, regulatory issues including competition regulation, employee benefits, environmental compliance or taxation issues.

BDV offers advice based on extensive experience with issues of fraudulent conveyance, liability transfer through asset purchases, challenges to changes of creditor positions in enforcement, bankruptcy and pre-bankruptcy proceedings and divestment obligation in merger clearance filings. The Croatian enforcement law framework has also been amended – new legislation only recently enabled a clearer view on the new creditor position in enforcement proceedings.

Our tax law practice provides support on VAT issues concerning asset transfers or claim purchases. We work closely with financial experts in identifying financial difficulties and offer out-of-court solutions typically through asset deals. If a company’s liabilities are carefully identified and if the transaction structure is tailored (mostly carried out through asset deal structures) to particular legal circumstances (liability transfers, tax implications), such acquisitions often offer more opportunities than in non-distressed M&A transactions.