Kam Jamshidi
Kam is a market leading expert in private equity and public and private M&A.
His expertise covers the full spectrum of M&A situations, including competitive and bilateral private M&A, take privates and takeover defence, shareholder arrangements, demergers and corporate restructures. He has particular expertise in US and South East Asian cross-border M&A and founder M&A.
Kam is a Chambers recognised mergers & acquisitions expert focussing on private equity and public and private M&A. He has advised on the most cutting-edge transactions in the Australian market.
Kam is called upon to advise some of the most sophisticated clients for their most important transactions. His expertise covers the full spectrum of M&A situations, including competitive sales, bilateral deals, sponsor-to-sponsor deals, founder M&A, take privates, takeover defence, shareholder roll-overs and complex and novel structures.
He has extensive experience acting for and across from private equity, corporate clients and founders. He has particular expertise in cross-border deals, including involving US and South East Asian transactors.
Kam has built a loyal following among the market’s most sophisticated transactors. Clients highly value his ability to combine technical excellence, strong commercial acumen, speed and responsiveness and great skill in complex problem solving.
Kam has been consistently recognised as a leading M&A lawyer by the highly coveted Chambers legal rankings.
Kam has advised on some of the highest profile, most challenging and novel transactions in the market. He brings a wealth of experience, across the full spectrum of M&A and corporate situations.
Kam is particularly recognised for his expertise in:
- Private equity: including platform acquisitions and divestments (both competitive and bilateral situations), partnering with founders and management, sponsor-to-sponsor situations, roll-ups and take privates.
- Public M&A: takeover defence strategies, scrip M&A and combinations, demergers, redomiciliations and other complex or novel structures.
- Corporate M&A: advising a variety of corporates across a range of industries on their most important M&A, whether acquisitions, divestments, takeover defence or restructures.
- Shareholder and joint venture arrangements: consortium arrangements, founder roll-overs and other shareholder or joint venture arrangements.
Kam has deep cross-border M&A experience, particularly relating to the United States and South East Asia. Kam has worked on some of the largest US-Australian transactions in the market, including advising:
- Newcrest on the scrip merger with NYSE-listed Newmont Corporation;
- Amcor’s redomicilation to the NYSE and combination with Bemis;
- BHP on the combination of BHP Petroleum and Woodside; and
- on a large number of US inbound private acquisitions, including involving US financial sponsors.
He has worked closely with a range of US law firms and navigated multi-jurisdictional transactions.
Experience & capabilities
Selected matters
- Newcrest’s recommended $26 billion merger with NYSE-listed Newmont, the third largest public company M&A transaction in Australian corporate history
- BHP on its US$21 billion sale of BHP Petroleum to Woodside for scrip consideration that was simultaneously distributed to BHP shareholders by way of an in specie dividend – the first transaction of its kind globally
- Crown Resorts on the $9.8 billion takeover by Blackstone by way of scheme of arrangement
- Australian United Investment Company’s ~$3 billion scrip merger with Diversified United investment
- Aura’s acquisition by scheme of ASX-listed Qoria, to create a ~$3 billion market-cap combined entity
- BHP on the unification of its dual listed company structure by way of UK scheme of arrangement
- BGH Capital on its roll-up of 24 cyber security and cloud service providers through CyberCX and eventual sale to Accenture for a reported ~$1 billion
- BGH Capital on its bid for El Jannah quick service restaurants
- BGH Capital on its investment in the Laurent Bakery business and eventual sale to Group Le Duff
- BGH Capital on the take private of Village Roadshow with the Kirby family by scheme of arrangement
- Adamantem Capital on its acquisition of Mason Stevens, by scheme of arrangement
- Quadrant Private Equity on the acquisition of Birch & Waite for a reported $300-400m
- Bain Capital and Goldman Sachs Asset Management on their debt and equity investment into ATI Global (InfoTrack)
- Afterpay on its collaboration with Westpac Banking Corporation to establish Money by Afterpay
- Amcor’s US$17 billion merger with NYSE listed Bemis Company Inc and redomiciliation by way of scheme of arrangement
- BHP’s competitive sale process for its onshore US oil and gas assets and eventual US$10.5 billion sale to BP
- The Reject Shop on takeover defence in respect of the hostile bid by a subsidiary of Kin Group
- Pacific Brands on the acquisition by Hansbrands Inc, valued at ~A1.1 billion
- UXC on the acquisition by scheme of arrangement by Computer Sciences Corporation, valued at ~$500 million
- BHP Billiton’s complex restructure and demerger of South32, valued at ~$13 billion
- Iluka’s assessment of the demerger of its MAC Royalty interest, creating Deterra Resources
- Advent Partners on various acquisitions and divestments including Compass Education, Integrated Packaging Group and Integral Diagnostics
- TPG Capital’s A$880 million acquisition of Ingham Enterprises
- Founder exit roles and sale processes:
- Swisse Wellness’s highly competitive sale process and eventual A$1.9 billion sale to Biostime International
- Rip Curl’s sale to Kathmandu for cash and scrip consideration valued at $350 million
- Total Tools in the sale process conducted, eventually resulting in the sale to Metcash
- Government privatisations
- Shareholders arrangements for the successful bidders in Port of Melbourne
- Shareholders arrangements for the successful bidders in Ausgrid
- Shareholders arrangements for the successful bidders in Queensland motorways
- Equity documents, shareholder arrangements and due diligence for various other government privatisations
Sectors
Background
Clients trust Kam with their most important and complex acquisitions and divestments. He is deeply technical, highly commercial, an innovative problem solver and highly responsive. Kam has built a loyal following among his clients for his effectiveness and service quality.
Kam has been ranked by Chambers and Partners for consecutive years.
Kam has a double degree Bachelor of Laws (honours) / Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting / Finance) from the University of Melbourne. Kam has been admitted to practice in Victoria since April 2009.
Kam previously worked as an Investment Banker with Goldman Sachs in the Industrials team.
Kam is responsible for annually publishing HSF Kramer’s private M&A report and public M&A report, and is editor in chief of their private equity publication, The Carry.
