30 April 20242 minute read

DLA Piper M&A Summit

Transacting in Times of Unrest, Uncertainty and an Election

Tuesday, April 30, 2024


DLA Piper hosted their inaugural DLA Piper M&A Summit in New York on April 30, 2024. 

The Summit included panels of all-star dealmakers, investors, and innovators discussing a number of timely, M&A trends and topics, as well as exclusive industry networking opportunities. Our panels of industry leaders offered observations on the state of the market and shared their insights on executing transactions in both certain and uncertain market conditions. 

Our panelists included an esteemed list of dealmakers, investors, and innovators from organizations such as Tilray Brands, Bain Capital, UBS, Cortec Group, Snowpoint Ventures, Spotlight Advisors, Moelis, and Progress Software, among others. 

DLA Piper lawyers led discussions tailored to address the business-critical issues the industry currently faces. 

  • Transacting globally amid issues and concerns arising from macropolitical events and the current state of the US markets.
  • Understanding and Mitigating Current Cyber Risk in Mergers and Acquisitions
  • How are Leveraged Buyers Closing Deals in the Current Financing Environment?
  • Activism in the Current Environment
  • Current Trends in Public M&A 
  • Beyond the Rhetoric: What’s Really Happening in Antitrust Merger Review? 

For more information 
Please send inquiries to MASummit@us.dlapiper.com.

Event photos

Agenda

8:00 AM-9:00 AM

9:00 AM-9:20 AM 

Speaker 
Christopher Giordano, Partner; Chair, US Mergers and Acquisitions Group, Chair, New York Corporate Group, DLA Piper

9:20 AM-10:00 AM 

Speakers 
Doug Philippone, Co-Founder & General Partner of Snowpoint Ventures and Head of Global Defense at Palantir Technologies
Richard Hans, Managing Partner, Verticals, DLA Piper

Summary 
Doug Philippone will address transacting globally amid issues and concerns arising from macropolitical events and the current state of the US markets.  

10:00 AM-10:50 AM 

Moderator  
Andy Serwin, Partner, DLA Piper  

Speakers 
Kelly Harris, Managing Director Global Head of Cyber Legal, UBS  
Samantha Vaughan, Chief Privacy Officer, Verisk
Carmen Oveissi Field, Principal, Cyber and Strategic Risk, Deloitte
James Perry, Senior Director, Consulting Services, CrowdStrike Services

Summary 
Mergers and acquisitions can present your company with significant opportunities, as well as risks. Information can be one of the main values of a transaction, but it can also present risks that can derail a transaction. This presentation will examine the pitfalls and opportunities of an M&A transaction, as well as how to better prepare for and understand the cyber risks inherent in many acquisitions. 

10:50 AM-11:15 AM

11:15 AM-12:10 PM 

Moderator  
James Kelly, Partner, DLA Piper 

Speakers 
Michael Najjar, Managing Partner, Cortec Group 
Alan Rockwell, Partner, DLA Piper
Dan Alster, Managing Director, J. Wood Capital Advisors
Rob Callaghan, Associate Director, Capital Markets, Deerpath Capital

Summary
This panel discussion will focus on the current state of the debt finance markets in the US, offering up views on the current state of public syndicated loan markets and availability of debt financing from private credit funds and how this impacts the ability of corporate borrowers to raise new debt financing to help fund acquisitions of new businesses or refinancing existing debt that is maturing. Our panelists will offer up views from the perspective of lenders, borrowers, debt advisors and counsel taking into account recent market activity and the current regulatory and macro-economic environment and will compare market trends between 2023 and Q1 2024 and look ahead to what is in store for the remainder of 2024 and 2025.

12:10 PM-1:10 PM

1:10 PM-1:30 PM 

Speaker 
Amanda Wait, Partner, DLA Piper

1:30 PM-2:15 PM 

Moderator 
Sanjay Shirodkar, Partner, DLA Piper  

Speakers 
Paul Schulman, Senior Managing Partner – M&A and Activism Advisory, Morrow Sodali  
Greg Taxin, Managing Member, Spotlight Advisors 
Craig Wadler, Managing Director, Moelis & Co.

Summary
Shareholder activism in M&A has become a pivotal force in shaping corporate strategies, with activists leveraging their equity stakes to influence M&A outcomes and unlock shareholder value. In the current landscape, activists are increasingly sophisticated, utilizing a variety of tactics ranging from public campaigns to proxy fights to affect both the negotiation and execution of M&A deals. This panel will explore the evolving dynamics of shareholder activism in M&A, examining its impact on deal structures, corporate governance, and market perceptions, as well as the implications for boards, management teams, and investors.


2:15 PM-2:40 PM

2:40 PM-3:25 PM 

Moderator  
Jon Venick, Partner, DLA Piper  

Speakers 
Denise Faltischek, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of International, Tilray Brands  
Anton Sahazizian, Managing Director Global Head of Mergers & Acquisitions, Moelis 
Stephanie Wang, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary, Progress Software 

Summary
The discussion will focus on current and anticipated trends in the market with respect to acquisitions of public companies, including an overview of the impact that interest rates, geopolitical events and general market volatility has had on the market in general and specific sectors. The panelists will also discuss the impact on the market that increased foreign direct investment and anti-trust related legislation has had, including with respect to timing and expense expectations.

3:25 PM-3:30 PM 

Speaker 
Christopher Giordano, Partner; Chair, US Mergers and Acquisitions Group, Chair, New York Corporate Group, DLA Piper

3:30 PM-4:30 PM

Speakers

Kelly Harris
Managing Director Global Head of Cyber Legal
UBS
                      

Greg Taxin
Managing Member
Spotlight Advisors

James Perry
Senior Director, Consulting Services
CrowdStrike Services

 

Craig Wadler
Managing Director
Moelis & Co.

Michael Najjar
Managing Partner
Cortec Group

 

Stephanie Wang
Chief Legal Officer and Secretary
Progress Software

Paul Schulman
Senior Managing Partner – M&A and Activism Advisory
Morrow Sodali

 

Denise Faltischek
Chief Strategy Officer and Head of International
Tilray Brands

Samantha Vaughan
Chief Privacy Officer
Verisk

 

Anton Sahazizian
Managing Director Global Head of Mergers & Acquisitions
Moelis

Dan Alster
Managing Director
J. Wood Capital Advisors

 

Carmen Oveissi Field
Principal, Cyber and Strategic Risk
Deloitte

Rob Callaghan
Associate Director, Capital Markets
Deerpath Capital

  Doug Philippone
Co-Founder & General Partner of Snowpoint Ventures
and Head of Global Defense at Palantir Technologies
   

DLA Piper Speakers

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