M&AAug 8, 2026, 00:13 UTC

Icon's $12B buy of PRA Health leads busy German advisory slate

What's the deal? A cluster of new legal mandates has emerged across German and European dealmaking, led by clinical research firm Icon's $12 billion acquisition of PRA Health Sciences. Noerr is advising Icon on the transaction with Fabian Badtke and Jens Peter Schmidt.

What else is moving? Siemens is buying chip verification firm OneSpin Solutions, with DLA Piper advising the buyer via Gerald Schumann. Elsewhere, KKR is selling a 25.1% stake in defence electronics group Hensoldt to Leonardo; Hengeler Mueller advises KKR, while Clifford Chance acts for Leonardo.

Who's raising capital? Peptide maker Polypeptide is going public, with Clifford Chance advising the company and Linklaters guiding the bank syndicate. Hogan Lovells is supporting coordinators Jefferies and Unicredit on a capital increase at Deutsche Beteiligungs AG.

What's on the M&A ledger? Armira has mandated Norton Rose Fulbright for its purchase of Salesfive, and White & Case is advising Lime Technologies on its acquisition of Userlike. Simmons & Simmons is standing beside Gimv on its investment in the Apraxon group.

Deutsche Börse is drawing on Noerr's Holger H. Ebersberger for its investment in new digital marketplaces. On the lending side, Görg is advising Sparkasse KölnBonn on loans to football club 1. FC Köln.

The signal: The breadth of mandates — spanning a $12 billion pharma-services takeover, defence consolidation, chip technology, and an IPO — points to sustained deal activity across German and European markets, keeping the leading law firms busy on both sides of the table.