Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (‘Freshfields’) is advising GXO Logistics, Inc (‘GXO’) on its £965 million acquisition of Clipper Logistics PLC (‘Clipper’).

GXO is the largest pure-play contract logistics provider in the world and an innovator in the logistics industry. Previously a spin-off from XPO Logistics, Inc in August 2021, the company is now listed separately on the New York Stock Exchange with a market capitalisation of approximately US$9.7 billion.

Clipper is an omni-channel retail logistics specialist, which provides value-added consultancy-led services to its blue-chip client base. Listed on the premium segment of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, Clipper has an increasing presence in mainland Europe, with operations in the UK, Poland, Germany, the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands and Belgium.

The acquisition was announced on 28 February 2022 and is expected to close in the summer of 2022. The acquisition is conditional on the receipt of regulatory and Clipper shareholder approvals. 

A cross-border Freshfields team is being led by London-based corporate partners Piers Prichard Jones and Rhys Evans, and associate Jonathan Carver, and New York-based corporate partner Sebastian Fain.