Richard Witvliet
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Richard advises private equity funds and other investors on all types of cross-border leveraged M&A, with a strong focus on life sciences and the technology market. He is a graduate economist from Erasmus University Rotterdam, enabling him to provide interdisciplinary advice to his clients at the intersection of financial economics and law. Richard is a trained mediator and known for his hands-on commercial approach.
He works from Houthoff's Amsterdam and London offices. From 2016 to 2017, Richard was seconded to Herbert Smith Freehills in London. In 2018, he won the M&A Award for Best Young M&A Lawyer from a leading M&A community in the Netherlands.
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RecommendedLegal 500, CorporateM&A (2023 edition) -
Best Young M&A LawyerM&A Awards 2018, Alex van Groningen
Qualifications & Experience
- Economics (Erasmus University Rotterdam)
- Law (Erasmus University Rotterdam)
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Advised Castik Capital S.a.r.l. on the acquisition of paraDIGMA Group.
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Advised DataExpert B.V. on the acquisition of DetACT Software from Fox-IT B.V.
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Advised, together with lead counsel Ropes & Gray International LLP, Bridgepoint Advisers II Limited as a local counsel on its acquisition of the SK AeroSafety group, specialising in maintenance, repair, overhaul and the design and manufacture of aerospace systems and components.
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Advised LLP SunMed on its acquisition of Vyaire Medical’s (“Vyaire”) business unit that manufactures and markets respiratory and anesthesia consumables. Houthoff acted alongside Goodwin Procter on this deal advised on the Dutch elements of the transaction.
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Advised Bridgepoint Advisers II Limited on its acquisition of the DataExpert group, a leading provider of products and services to combat cybercrime and fraud and deliver forensic and incident response solutions.
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Advised Dusseldorp Automotive B.V., a Dutch BMW- and MINI dealer, on the acquisition of the VMD Group from Autobinck Group.
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Advised Libbey on the sale of its European operations, Royal Leerdam and Crisal Glass, to Anders Invest. Libbey is one of the world's largest glass tableware manufacturers.
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Advised a.s.r. on the acquisition of Sweco Capital Consultants.
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Advised Siemens with its acquisition of Sqills, a leading provider in the provision of cloud-based inventory management, reservation, and ticketing software to public transport operators around the world. The agreed purchase price is EUR 550 million plus an earn out.
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Advised Siemens with its acquisition of TimeSeries, a leading Independent Software Vendor (ISV) and Mendix partner.
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Advised Proto Labs, Inc, in collaboration with Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP (lead counsel), on the USD 330 million acquisition of the Dutch start-up 3D Hubs, the Dutch platform for digital 3D printers.
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Assisted Credit Suisse Asset Management Global Real Estate in the acquisition of a newly developed distribution centre for Jumbo in Bleiswijk. The seller, Somerset, retains a 10% interest in the business.
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Assisted Vermeg, Vermeg's founder and its management team in Charterhouse's acquisition of an interest in Vermeg from Crédit Mutuel Arkéa.
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Represented Agilitas Private Equity Services Limited in the acquisition of TenCate Advanced Armour Holding B.V., the global leading manufacturer of lightweight survivability solutions.
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Advised BC Partners on the acquisition of Keesing Media Group from Ergon Capital and Mediahuis.
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Advised Siemens with its acquisition of Culgi. Culgi provides expertise and develops software solutions for multiscale chemistry simulation, from quantum chemistry to molecular dynamics.
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Served as legal advisor to ECI Software Solutions, a leader in cloud-based business management solutions. ECI has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Netherlands-based Trivest Beheer B.V., a provider of smart vertical software solutions to the SME manufacturing sector. With this acquisition, Trivest’s nearly 3,000 customers and more than 300 employees will join ECI’s manufacturing division.
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Advised Sandd in the sale and transfer of Sandd to PostNL for an amount of EUR 130 million. This transaction resulted in the acquisition of almost the entire postal market by PostNL.
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Houthoff assisted CDL Hospitality Trusts (CDL) in a transaction where CDL took a majority interest in the four-star hotel 'MGallery by Sofitel' in Florence, Italy. Houthoff worked on this transaction with Allen & Gledhill (Singapore), Shooklin & Bok (Singapore) and Chiomenti (Italy).
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Represented Active Capital Company in their acquisition of Lumat International from their previous owners. Lumat is a supplier of High Tenacity Yarn, Polyester, Polyamide, (Nylon), Aramide and Synthetic continuous filament yarn.
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Houthoff represented the sellers of Kompas International, a provider of trust and corporate services, in their divestment of Kompas International to Praxis IFM, one of the largest independent and owner-managed financial services groups headquartered in the Channel Islands.
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Represented Sandd in the acquisition of Van Straaten Post from its previous owners. The combined group is able to service the 24-, 48- and 72- hours postal market throughout the work week with national coverage. The acquisition is part of Sandd’s strategy to become a real alternative on the Dutch postal market.
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Houthoff advised BGI Genomics Co., Ltd. on all Dutch-law aspects in connection with its successful IPO at the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. BGI is a leading gene sequencing firm, offering a wide portfolio of genetic testing products across major diseases, enabling medical providers and patients worldwide to realise the promise of genomics-based diagnostics and personalised healthcare.
