Pierre-Louis Cléro is a partner in the firm’s Corporate Department and the Deputy Office Managing Partner for the firm’s Paris office. He represents corporate buyers and sellers in complex cross-border strategic transactions. Pierre-Louis is the former Regional Chair of Latham & Watkins' Corporate Department in Continental Europe.

Pierre-Louis has more than two decades of experience advising clients on:

  • Large-cap mergers and acquisitions
  • General corporate and commercial law matters
  • Publicly listed companies and corporate governance
  • Joint ventures
  • Venture capital and private equity
  • Stock exchange-related transactions
  • M&A-related litigation

He draws on a keen business sense and extensive experience navigating strategic negotiations in large, multijurisdictional transactions. Pierre-Louis focuses on prioritizing his clients’ interests by leveraging his understanding of their commercial objectives and internal dynamics.

Pierre-Louis helps clients make decisions within challenging and multicultural transactional environments, guiding them through effective risk analysis and mitigation.

Recognition

Recognized as a Leading Individual in The Legal 500 EMEA 2022

Pierre-Louis is described as an "excellent legal expert" by clients. Chambers Europe 2022

Pierre-Louis' experience includes representing:

Strategic M&A

  • Teleperformance in its acquisition of Majorel, a Luxembourg-based digital business services company
  • Pernod Ricard on the sale of the Becherovka brand, an iconic Czech bitter, to the Maspex group
  • Inari Medical in its acquisition of LimFlow
  • L’Oréal in its proposed acquisition of Aēsop
  • Saur in connection with the acquisition of Suez by Veolia, and then as purchaser of the divested assets in the context of the commitments made by Veolia
  • AllianceBernstein in its joint venture project with Société Générale in order to accelerate its growth in the cash actions 
  • ZEPLUG, a leading European provider of electric vehicle charging services in multi-occupant and office buildings, in its €240 million fundraising and acquisition of Bornes Solutions
  • Carrefour in connection with
    • The acquisition of Cajoo, a quick commerce pioneer in France, by Flink
    • Its sale of a majority stake in fintech Market Pay to AnaCap
  • DAMS Développement in the sale of DAMS
  • Tencent in its minority investment in Alma, completed as part of the company’s c. €115 million Series C round
  • Worldline, the European leader in payments services, in:
    • The proposed binding offer by Apollo funds to acquire its Terminals, Solutions & Services business (TSS)
    • Its €2.3 billion proposed acquisition of SIX Payment Services from SIX
  • Atos in its:
    • exclusive negotiations with Lutech S.p.A. (Lutech), an Italian provider of IT services and solutions, for the sale of its Italian operations
    • Sale of Worldline shares for €1.23 billion, through a placement to qualified investors by way of ABB and transfer to the Atos UK 2019 Pension Scheme
    • Spin-off of 23.4% of Worldline’s share capital for €2.34 billion in total consideration
  • Siemens in the combination of its mobility business, including its rail traction drive business, in a merger of equals with Alstom, representing €15.3 billion in combined revenue
  • MGN in the contemplated sale of Euronews
  • TA Associates and its founders in Antin Infrastructure Partners’ investment in Babilou, a leading private network of daycare facilities and early years education in Europe
  • Mainstay Medical, a European medical device company focused on bringing to market an innovative implantable neurostimulation system, in delisting its shares from Euronext Paris
  • L’Oréal in the sale of the Roger & Gallet brand, a French cosmetics and fragrance firm
  • Shandong Ruyi Investment Holding in acquiring a controlling stake in Bally International, a Switzerland-based designer and manufacturer footwear and other related products
  • Euronews in its joint venture with Comcast/NBC and Comcast/NBC’s investment in Euronews
  • Lagardère Active in its investment and joint venture with marketplace Shopcade
  • Shandong Ruyi Group, one of China’s largest textile manufacturers, in acquiring SMCP (Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot), a leading global luxury company, from KKR and other investors and its subsequent IPO on Euronext Paris’ regulated market
  • Galeries Lafayette Group in its acquisition of La Redoute
  • A consortium led by Beijing Sanyuan Foods and Fosun Group in its acquisition of St Hubert
  • Vipshop International Holding in its book building of ShowRoomPrivé shares
  • Alcatel-Lucent’s board of directors in Alcatel-Lucent and Nokia’s combination
  • Emerson Electric in its sale of Leroy-Somer and Control Techniques, a manufacturer and supplier of alternators, drives, and motors, to Nidec
  • Schlumberger, the world’s largest oilfield services company, in the sale of Schlumberger Business Consulting, its oil consulting business, to Accenture
  • Vinci Construction in acquiring HEB Construction, a New Zealand-based civil construction company
  • Lagardère Services Distribution in its sale of more than 900 points of sale across five jurisdictions
  • Expedia in acquiring Auto Escape, a leading European online car rental reservation company, from Montefiore Investment
  • A Hédiard shareholder in the food purveyor’s bankruptcy proceedings
  • Chenavari Investment in its acquisition of Buy Way, a leading consumer credit company in Belgium and Luxembourg
  • Lagardère in the context of:
    • Selling 20% of its stake in Canal+ France to Vivendi
    • A binding offer from Hearst for its international magazine business*
  • Air France in its acquisition of Airlinair and in the joint venture structuring of regional airline HOP!
  • JCDecaux in its acquisition of 25% of and joint venture with Russ Outdoor, an outdoor advertising leader in Russia
  • Ingenico in its acquisition of Ogone, leading pan-European online payment services provider
  • Recyfina in its sale of Recylux Group to Ecore*
  • Schlumberger in its US$1.07 billion acquisition of Geoservices* 
  • Air France-KLM in its €323 million acquisition of a 25% interest in Alitalia*
  • Arcelor in the attempted spin-off and IPO of its stainless steel activities*

Venture Capital Financings

  • Lead investor a16z (Andreessen Horowitz) on the €385 million Series A financing round of Mistral AI, a French startup specializing in generative artificial intelligence
  • Atomico in its investment in Sorare’s US$680 million Series B raise, the largest ever in the non-fungible token (NFT) space
  • Dragoneer on France’s largest independent e-commerce site ManoMano's US$355 million fundraising
  • Coatue Management in its investment in Alan, France’s leading independent digital health insurance provider
  • Tencent in the context of:
    • Its subscription of €36 million of new shares issued by DON’T NOD, an independent French studio that creates, develops, and publishes video games
    • Its minority investment in Voodoo, the world leader in hyper-casual games
    • Its investment in DONTNOD Entertainment, an independent French studio that creates and develops video games
  • Carrefour in its minority investment in Cajoo, a French specialist in the express delivery of everyday shopping

*Matter handled prior to joining Latham

Bar Qualification

  • Avocat (Paris)

Education

  • MBA Finance and Strategy, ESCP Graduate School of Management, 2000
  • Graduate Degree Business and Tax Law, University of Paris X (Nanterre), 1999