Experience, professionalism, optimization and global approach

Anquor Corporate Finance is an M&A boutique that has been providing specialized advisory services in corporate finance for more than 30 years. An experience that was successfully developed under the name of Eurohold, a company that in recent years has become the independent leader in the Spanish market for Mid-Cap and Small-Cap companies.

At the end of 2019, ANQUOR CORPORATE FINANCE was created, the new project of a team of 20 professionals, led by the founder of EUROHOLD, with the aim of providing Corporate Finance services at a national and international level to entrepreneurs, Spanish and multinational business groups, as well as investors and family offices or private equity managers with a total and long-term commitment to their clients. “In our opinion, the only way to achieve this goal is to consider each project with each client in the same way that they take care of their companies”, explains Pascal Vieilledent, CEO.

SERVICES AND MODUS OPERANDI Within the Corporate Finance sector, we mainly offer advice on mergers and acquisitions both in Spain and internationally, either directly in the countries we know best (France and Portugal) or through the leading international network in our sector, with direct presence in 35 countries, GLOBAL M&A ADVISORS (www.globalma.com) of which it is an exclusive member for Spain since the 4th quarter of 2020.

Our services are provided to measure, through an approach based on the knowledge and experience of our team in certain sectors (pharmaceutical industry, cosmetics, bio products, tourism, chemicals, banking, consulting, wines and spirits, distribution); although our methodology and the resources of our back-office team allow us to carry out orders in a large majority of the activity sectors. ANQUOR partners have extensive experience in providing customized services, thanks to more than 30 years of experience in Corporate Finance, with a proven track-record in domestic and cross-border corporate operations and with a support team that uses the most current tools (market databases, transactions, financial…).

In general, ANQUOR CORPORATE FINANCE acts with a clear vocation for service and accompanies its clients throughout the process, from the conception and structuring of operations to their closing. This makes it possible to better preserve confidentiality, make it easier for the client to focus on their business and optimize processes, shortening deadlines and improving the quality of execution. “Our services could be defined as when the shareholders of a family or private company want to sell part or all of the capital. We do a custom and complete process. That is: definition of the type of operation, valuation of the company (with methods that the market currently uses and with the parameters updated at any time), preparation of an Information Memorandum (a dossier that is a true reflection of the company), organization of the negotiations with the potential interested parties and, once the principles of the transaction have been agreed upon, that is, a Letter of Intent or a Non-Binding Offer has been signed, we organize the virtual data-room (which speeds up the process of due-diligence) and we actively participate in the definitive closing of the transaction with the lawyers of both parties. For a purchase mandate process, we previously carry out a detailed study of the market to pre-select the companies that are best suited to our client’s requirements. In addition to the provision of mergers-acquisitions mentioned, we also advise on strategy and financing. We offer this last service for two reasons: the market is requiring it, both for new financing and for the renegotiation of previous ones; and because we have partners with proven experience in this field in the ANQUOR CORPORATE FINANCE team” explains Pascal Vieilledent.

CURRENT MARKET TRENDS The arrival of Covid-19 has significantly affected the M&A market in 2020, but throughout the first quarter of 2021 there is a reactivation of the market. Although a few operations were not canceled in 2020, most of the players decided to be cautious and wait impatiently for the evolution of an unexpected crisis to resume the operations that were underway.

The duration of the crisis and its shape (V, U or L) will determine whether the corporates’ strategic revisions are more or less drastic. “Depending on the perception of the post-crisis market, a company can focus on its core business, make decisions to consolidate the market or, on the contrary, divest, all of these orientations will lead to M&A operations. As we return to the new normal, there will be an accelerated concentration in the sectors most affected by the crisis and, therefore, disinvestments. Most likely, there will be more mergers than usual, given that they are necessary in markets whose size can have been reduced significantly and over a long term. In the most affected companies, for which there are currently very few buyers, it is necessary to keep non-strategic assets on the balance sheets and help investees to weather the crisis while waiting for the tunnel to come out, using the tools that have been made available to investees to reduce cash burning: ERTEs, soft loans and deferral of taxes”, indicates the CEO of Anquor.

In conclusion, everything can change in the coming months, so the range of potential operations will expand. From companies that need operational or financial improvements, through investments or strategic divestments of large groups.