Noerr advises Micro Focus on billion euro sale of SUSE to EQT

With a team headed by Frankfurt office partners Till Kosche und Thorsten Reinhard, Noerr has advised the international software manufacturer Micro Focus on the sale of its subsidiary SUSE. The buyer is the investor EQT Partners, which will be taking over the open source pioneer SUSE for $2.5 billion via an investment vehicle.

The transaction is still subject to antitrust clearance and further closing conditions. Closing is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2019.

SUSE, which is headquartered in Nuremberg, has been developing Linux and open source solutions for more than 25 years. The software company Micro Focus, which is listed in the British stock index FTSE 100, acquired SUSE in 2014 when taking over the U.S. Attachmate Group. Also in that transaction Micro Focus relied on Noerr and a team led by partners Thorsten Reinhard and Tillmann Hecht. 

Advisors to Micro Focus International plc: Noerr LLP

Dr Till Kosche, Dr Thorsten Reinhard (joint team lead, both Corporate/M&A), Tillmann Hecht (Employment), Dr Fabian Badtke (Antitrust, all Frankfurt), Dr Carsten Heinz (Tax, Munich), Associate: Dr Thorsten Becker (Corporate/M&A, Frankfurt)

International lead counsel: Travers Smith LLP