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. Mr. Cléro is the former Regional Chair of Latham & Watkins' Corporate Department in Continental Europe.

Mr. Cléro 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. Mr. Cléro focuses on prioritizing his clients’ interests by leveraging his understanding of their commercial objectives and internal dynamics.

Mr. Cléro 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

Mr. Cléro is described as an "excellent legal expert" by clients. Chambers Europe 2022

Mr. Cléro’s 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 accessible 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