Pelin Demirdere Eski is a partner in the Corporate Team in the London office of Kirkland & Ellis International LLP. Pelin has advised private equity sponsors such as Apollo, General Atlantic, KKR and KPS on a wide range of transactions across numerous jurisdictions and sectors.
Following their acquisition, Pelin continues to advise portfolio companies of her private equity clients on follow-on investments, equity and incentive compensation plans for management, refinancing transactions (including high-yield bond offerings), initial public offerings, joint ventures and carve-out transactions as well as general corporate matters.
Experience
Representative Matters
Since joining Kirkland, Pelin has worked on the following matters, advising:
KPS Capital Partners in its acquisition of Sport Group.
KKR in:
the acquisition of WPP's full equity position in FGS Global (FGS).
the acquisition of a majority stake in Accountor Software.
its acquisition of Superstruct Entertainment.
its cash acquisition of IQGeo for £333 million.
its acquisition of nexeye.
its acquisition of Telecom Italia’s fixed-line network for €22 billion.
Prior to joining Kirkland, Pelin’s transactions include the representation of:
Apollo Global Management, Inc. in its strategic and financial partnership with Sofinnova Partners.
Asterion Industrial Partners in its acquisition of equity held by Oak Hill Advisors, Twin Point Capital and other minority shareholders in National Broadband Ireland.
Chess.com, a portfolio company of funds managed by General Atlantic, in its acquisition of Play Magnus.
Clearlake Capital Group in a consortium deal to acquire Chelsea Football Club.
Funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc. in:
the acquisition of United Living Group; and
the two-step acquisition of Gamenet Group S.p.A. through a share acquisition from TCP Lux Eurinvest S.à r.l. and Intralot Italian Investments B.V. followed by amandatory takeover for the remaining shares.
General Atlantic in:
its investment in Acesso Digital;
its investment in Fireblocks;
its investment in HiBob;
its investment in Hotmart;
its investment in Howden Group Holdings; and
its investment in OutSystems.
Gamenet Group S.p.A., a portfolio company of funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc., in its high yield bond offering.
Hemnet Group, a portfolio company of funds managed by General Atlantic, in its initial public offering on NASDAQ Stockholm.
KKR in:
the sale of its minority stake in the Spanish PV assets of Grupo T-Solar to Cubico Sustainable Investments;
its sale of South Staffordshire to pension funds and other institutional investors advised by Arjun Infrastructure Partners; and
its acquisition of Citation from HG Capital.
KPS Capital Partners in:
its acquisition of Metra Holdings S.p.A. and Metra S.p.A.;
the sale of its portfolio company Chassis Brakes International Group to Hitachi; and
its acquisition of controlling equity interest in Princess Yachts.
Sport Republic in:
its formation of the platform;
its acquisition of a majority stake in the English Premier League Southampton Football Club;
its acquisition of controlling equity interest in Göztepe S.K.; and
its acquisition of a controlling stake in Valenciennes FC.
Additional High Yield Experience advising:
Grupo Antolin in various high yield issuances;
Initial purchasers in offering by Corral Petroleum of its €624 million (equivalent) senior PIK toggle notes;
Unilabs, one of Europe’s leading suppliers of clinical laboratory testing and medical diagnostic imaging services, on its €250 million senior notes issuance;
Viridian, a leading utility active in the energy market across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, on its €600 million (equivalent) senior secured notes issuance; and
Voyage Care, a provider of registered care homes and community based care services, on its £215 million senior secured notes and £35 million second lien notes issuance
