Lenz & Staehelin advises JBF Finance on its Public tender offer for Bobst Group

JBF Finance has announced a public tender offer for all publicly held shares of SIX listed Bobst Group, the parent company of Bobst, one of the world’s leading suppliers of substrate processing, printing and converting equipment and services for the label, flexible packaging, folding carton and corrugated industries.

JBF is a company whose shares are held by more than 60 members of the families of the descendants of Joseph Bobst, who founded Bobst in 1890. With 53% of the company’s shares, JBF is also Bobst Group’s largest shareholder. Through its tender offer, JBF expects to be able to take Bobst Group private through a delisting of its shares. In this sense, once completed the Offering, JBF expects the Bobst Group to be privatized by delisting its shares from SIX Swiss Exchange, allowing it to focus on its long-term sustainable growth. The offering prospectus is expected to be posted around September 5, 2022.

JBF is committed to the long-term legacy of fifth-generation families and to the preservation of Switzerland as an industrial location. The Bobst Group will continue to be managed by independent directors as well as directors who are members of the family.

Lenz & Staehelin is advising JBF. The transaction team is led by Jacques Iffland (partner, pictured left) and Ariel Ben Hattar (associate, pictured right), and also includes Xavier Grivel, Yaël Nahmani and Stefan Schirm, all from corporate and capital markets group.

From the other side, Homburger is advising the Bobst Group, represented by a committee of independent board members, on the transaction. The team was led by partner Dieter Gericke (corporate / m&a, pictured) and also consisted of partner Richard Stäuber (competition, regulation), attorney Eduard De Zordi (capital markets), associates Anna Peter, Olivier Bühlmann and Isabelle Cordey (all corporate / m&a), and junior associate Anina Preusker.