George White’s practice focuses on international capital markets, corporate finance and mergers and acquisition transactions and corporate restructurings. He is active in the Firm’s Capital Markets, and Finance and Restructuring groups.
Mr. White has represented Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV and its predecessor companies for over 15 years. Since the beginning of 2009, Mr. White has represented AB InBev on over $82 billion of debt financings and re-financings, on its NYSE listing and SEC registration and on its $123 billion merger with SABMiller. Mr. White has also represented AB InBev on several debt exchange offers, reorganizations and related transactions. In 2015 and 2016, he advised AB InBev on its $46 billion senior unsecured notes via SEC registered public offering (the largest corporate offering in history), and its $1.74 billion and $565 million senior unsecured notes offerings listed on the Taipei Exchange. Mr. White continues to advise AB InBev on the U.S. SEC registration and New York Stock Exchange listing of the new Belgium company set up in connection with the take-over of SABMiller by AB InBev. In 2008, he advised AB InBev on its acquisition of Anheuser-Busch to create the world’s largest brewer and on its related equity and debt financings, including AB InBev’s €6.36 billion rights offering. He has regularly represented AB InBev’s predecessor companies, including advising Interbrew of Belgium on its combination with AmBev of Brazil in 2004, on the buy-out of minority interests in its Russian and Ukraine subsidiary in 2005 and its acquisition of Brauerei Beck in 2002.
Mr. White recently advised Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, the largest public company in Greece by market capitalization, on its re-listing on the London Stock Exchange under a new Swiss holding company and on the related exchange offers and financing arrangements. He has also worked with Coca-Cola Hellenic on its New York Stock Exchange listing, SEC-registered debt offerings and a variety of corporate matters.
Mr. White regularly advises Barclays PLC, Barclays Bank PLC and Barclays Capital on a variety of matters including its liability management programme, regulatory capital issuances, the sale of the Barclays Global Investors asset management business, the capital investment in Barclays by several strategic investors and various regulatory matters. He also represented Barclays on its proposed acquisition of ABN AMRO Holding N.V. in 2007. He has also been instrumental in helping Barclays to develop its retail structured financial products business in the United States.
In the area of high-yield finance, Mr. White has represented the underwriters for Jaguar Land Rover Automotive plc on several debt issues and debt tenders. He also represented Rhône Capital in relation to the financing of the Evonik Carbon Black acquisition.
Mr. White advised AT&T (then SBC Communications), the leading strategic investor in Telkom SA, the largest telecommunications company in South Africa, in connection with the SEC registration and initial public offering of Telkom, as well as the subsequent disposition of this investment through a secondary offering and a sale to a strategic investor. Mr. White also advised AT&T in the sale of its 41% interest in TDC A/S of Denmark. He represented the controlling shareholder of Equant in connection with the acquisition of Equant by France Telecom in 2001.
In the field of international capital markets, in addition to his work for Anheuser-Busch InBev, Barclays, Coca-Cola HBC and AT&T, Mr. White represented Siemens (Germany) and its semiconductor subsidiary, Infineon Technologies, in connection with the initial public offering and spin-off of Infineon in 2001. In 2000, he represented Interbrew (Belgium) on its initial public offering. He also advised Allianz (Germany) in connection with its New York Stock Exchange listing. His experience advising issuers in connection with initial public offerings also includes representing adidas (Germany) and ASM Lithography (Netherlands) in their highly successful flotations in the United States and Europe. He represented the controlling shareholder of Equant (Netherlands) in Equant’s initial public offering in 1998 and its 1999 follow-on secondary offerings. Between 1996 and 1999, he advised the global coordinators on the various tranches of the Deutsche Telekom privatisation, and he also represented the managers in numerous offerings by German, Dutch and UK companies.
Mr. White has also assisted several clients with internal investigations and other sensitive corporate matters.
Mr. White previously served as Co-Chair of the Capital Markets Forum of the International Bar Association. He also serves on the Consultative Advisory Group to the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board. Mr. White speaks at a variety of trade associations and in professional and educational forums on topics including corporate governance and regulation of capital markets.