Virtual data rooms - Recent experience
Examples of Allens Arthur Robinson's experience in Internet accessible technology solutions are:
Southcorp takeover 2005
The online data room used for the nearly 1,000 documents on this transaction
demonstrated the adaptability and costs savings that only this medium can
achieve within tight timeframes. Once the takeover was concluded, the online
data room was adapted for the integration process, becoming an online 'library'
of all information needed to progress integration decisions with the addition of
a few extra materials. When a data room was needed to assist capital raising in
the US, the online takeover data room was able to be copied, modified and made
available to a variety of US users within 48 hours of the initial instructions.
This would have taken at least a week with any other approach.
Lion Nathan sale of China assets 2004
Allens acted for Lion Nathan with potential purchasers and their advisers located
in Australia, China, Japan and Singapore. The Allens online data room team was
centralised in Sydney, while instructions were issued from Shanghai. Q&A was run
electronically in conjunction with the online data room. The technology enabled
the vendor to store all potentially relevant materials in one central location
for internal review purposes, although those documents were made available to
bidders only on a gradual basis, with some documents converted from
non-printable to printable but not others.
Acquistion of the Clipsal Electrical Wiring and Accessories business in
Asia and South Africa 2003
Allens acted for the purchaser in this A$1 billion transaction. As purchaser,
Allens
established a virtual data room for transaction documents associated with the
Asian transaction, to which legal advisers in 14 different jurisdictions were
directed whenever they sought copies of draft transaction documents. The time
saved in using this method was invaluable, due to the long hours needed to
finalise all other matters needed for completion. Allens also benefited from the
vendor in the Australian data room establishing a website onto which the more
than 2,500 documents needed for completion were loaded in Adelaide, for Allens in
Sydney to review.
