Allen & Overy and Clifford Chance have advised Abu Dhabi's two biggest property firms on a state-backed, all-share merger that has created a firm with 46 billion dirham ($15 billion) in assets.
Clifford Chance has advised Sorouh Real Estate, with Allen & Overy counseling Aldar Properties in the merger, which was recently approved by the Abu Dhabi Executive Council and declared effective by the Ministry of Economy upon close of trading on June 27, 2013.
The Clifford Chance team was led by M&A partner Mohammed Al-Shukairy, whose team also included partners Guy Norman, Robin Abraham and Sandy Hall.
The tie-up creates the second-largest listed property firm in the United Arab Emirates. Sorouh shareholders are expected to receive 1.288 Aldar shares for every share in Sorouh, which will be delisted once the merger is completed.
With the support of Abu Dhabi, which owns a major stake in Aldar, managements of the two companies had held talks for nearly 18 months on asset valuations, financial terms and the new management structure.
Aldar, which built Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Formula One motor racing circuit, has relied heavily on the government in recent years for funding. Abu Dhabi has spent more than $10 billion on the company, equivalent to the amount it deployed to rescue Dubai from a bond default in 2009.
The merger between the two firms comes as Abu Dhabi's property market continues to struggle with a huge supply of high-end homes that entered the market last year.
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