Klaus Ilmonen
Klaus Ilmonen
Klaus Ilmonen heads our Capital Markets practice in Helsinki. His practice includes equity capital markets and other corporate transactions involving public corporations. He has considerable experience from public takeovers, as well as from cross-border transactions. He also works with governance of public corporations and is active in Hannes Snellman’s ESG Group.
Klaus has been appointed professor of practice at the Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki, and teaches corporate and securities law. He has also served on a consultative group for developing EU corporate finance regulation and has participated in drafting Finnish takeover regulation.
Klaus has qualified as an attorney in the State of New York, and practised U.S. securities law in the London office of the law firm Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, where he represented European issuers and underwriters in international securities offerings. He also worked on international M&A transactions.
He has been deployed with Finnish forces in Afghanistan, Kosovo and Lebanon, and serves as the managing director of the Mannerheim-Foundation in Finland.
Klaus has been a visiting researcher at Harvard Law School, he holds a LL.M. degree from Columbia Law School in New York and a doctorate in law from the University of Helsinki.
Very well-respected, skilful and experienced capital markets lawyer.
Chambers Global 2022
References
Parties:
Prime Minister’s Office, Finnair Plc
Transaction:
Hannes Snellman acted as counsel to the Prime Minister’s Office in the rights offering of Finnair Plc, the Finnish airline with the State of Finland being the majority owner. Hannes Snellman advised, among other, on the share subscription made by the State of Finland by way of offsetting, in part, a capital loan provided by the State of Finland to Finnair, and related state-aid law matters. The rights offering of EUR 570 million is one of the largest rights offerings in Finland in recent years.
Deal value:
Approximately EUR 570 million
Role:
Counsel to Prime Minister’s Office
Parties:
Uponor Corporation (target), Georg Fischer Ltd (buyer)
Transaction:
Counsel to Uponor Corporation in the recommended public cash tender offer by Georg Fischer Ltd to purchase all of the issued and outstanding shares of Uponor Corporation.
Value:
EUR 2.1 billion
Role:
Counsel to Uponor Corporation
Parties
A consortium consisting of Security Trading, Fennogens Investments, Corbis, and Bain Capital (buyer), Caverion Oyj (Target)
Transaction
Counsel to the offeror consortium consisting of Security Trading, Fennogens Investments, Corbis, and Bain Capital in the recommended public cash tender offer for all shares in Caverion Oyj.
Deal value
EUR 955 million
Role
Counsel to the offeror consortium consisting of Security Trading, Fennogens Investments, Corbis, and Bain Capital
Parties
The German State (Buyer), Fortum Oyj (Seller), Uniper SE (Target)
Transaction
Fortum Oyj’s arrangements related to stabilisation of its German subsidiary Uniper SE. The package will ensure multi-billion funding for Uniper, sale of Fortum’s shareholding in Uniper to the German State for approximately EUR 0.5 billion as well as repayment of Fortum’s EUR 4 billion receivables from Uniper and release of EUR 4 billion parent company guarantees.
Deal value
Approx. EUR 4.5 billion
Role
Finnish counsel to Fortum Oyj
Parties
Basware Corporation (target), a consortium consisting of Accel-KKR, Long Path Partners, and Briarwood Chase Management (buyer)
Transaction
Counsel to the offeror consortium of Accel-KKR, Long Path Partners, and Briarwood Chase Management in the tender offer for all outstanding securities in Basware Corporation.
Deal Value
EUR 620 million
Role
Counsel to the consortium
Parties
Citycon Oyj
Transaction
Citycon Oyj’s repurchase of a total amount of 9,500,000 own shares for a total purchase price of EUR 65.8 million as a result of a market based reverse accelerated bookbuild process
Deal Value
EUR 65.8 million
Role
Counsel to Citycon Oyj
Parties
Valmet, Neles
Transaction
Hannes Snellman acted as lead counsel to Valmet, a leading global developer and supplier of process technologies, automation, and services for the pulp, paper, and energy industries, in its merger with Neles, one of the leading providers of mission-critical flow control solutions and services for process industries in Finland.
Deal Value
The combined value of the merging companies is approximately EUR 7 billion.
Role
Lead counsel to Valmet
Parties
Terveystalo Plc, Terveystalo Healthcare Oy, Feelgood Svenska AB (publ)
Transaction
Hannes Snellman advised Terveystalo on its acquisition of 72 percent of the shares and recommended mandatory takeover offer for Feelgood Svenska AB (publ)
Deal Value
SEK 606 million / EUR 60 million
Role
Counsel Terveystalo Plc and Terveystalo Healthcare Oy
Parties
PPG Industries, Inc. (Bidder), Tikkurila Oyj (Target)
Transaction
Recommended public cash tender offer for all of the shares in Tikkurila by PPG Industries, Inc.
Deal Value
EUR 1.5 billion
Role
Counsel to Tikkurila Oyj
Comprehensive advice on the state aid law for the Prime Minister’s Office concerning the recapitalisation (rights offering) of the state-controlled airline Finnair Plc, including advise on the notification procedure before the European Commission. The rights offering of 500 MEUR is one of the largest rights offerings in Finland in recent years. The Commission’s decision in the case lead to amendments to the COVID-19 related State Aid Temporary Framework.
Parties
Verkkokauppa.com Oyj
Transaction
Verkkokauppa.com Oyj's listing on the official list of Nasdaq Helsinki on 5 June 2020
Deal Value
Value not public
Role
Counsel to Verkkokauppa.com Oyj
Parties
Tieto Corporation, EVRY ASA
Transaction
The combination of Tieto and EVRY through a cross-border merger
Deal Value
Value not public
Role
Counsel to EVRY ASA
Parties
Outotec Oyj, Metso Corporation
Transaction
The combination of Outotec and Metso Minerals through a demerger
Deal Value
EUR 3.9 billion (illustrative combined sales)
Role
Counsel to Outotec Oyj
Parties
Glaston Corporation
Transaction
Rights issue in Glaston Corporation
Deal Value
EUR 34 million
Role
Counsel to Glaston Corporation
Parties
Asiakastieto Group Plc (Buyer), UC AB (Target), Six Swedish banks (Sellers)
Transaction
Asiakastieto Group Plc’s pending acquisition of UC AB, a credit information company
Deal Value
Appr. EUR 340 million
Role
Counsel to Asiakastieto Group Plc
Parties
Suomen Terveystalo Oy
Transaction
Terveystalo’s IPO and listing on the Nasdaq Helsinki stock exchange
Deal Value
The offering by the company and its shareholders was over EUR 870 million and the Company’s market value was over EUR 1.2 billion
Role
Counsel to Terveystalo
Parties
Asiakastieto Group Plc
Transaction
Asiakastieto Group Plc’s IPO and listing on the Helsinki Stock Exchange
Deal Value
Approx. EUR 170 million
Role
Counsel to Asiakastieto Group Plc
Rankings
- Recognised as a Market Leader in Capital Markets, IFLR1000, 2024
- Hall of Fame, Capital Markets, Legal 500, 2024
- Ranked in Capital Markets, Chambers Europe, 2024
- Ranked in Capital Markets, Chambers Global, 2024
- 'Klaus Ilmonen is described as a "very well-respected, skilful and experienced capital markets lawyer."', Capital Markets, Chambers Global 2022
- "Klaus Ilmonen is the brilliant head of the practice", Capital Markets, Legal 500, 2020
- Leading individual, Capital Markets, Legal 500, 2020-2022
- "Clients say he has an 'encyclopedic knowledge of the issues and is very collaborative when working with the other side.'", Chambers Europe 2020
- "Impeccable legal knowledge and commercial understanding.", IFLR1000, 2020
- Ranked as a Market leader in Capital Markets in the 2019-2021 editions of IFLR1000
- "Sources say that Klaus Ilmonen is 'responsive, pragmatic and easy to work with. He is also extremely experienced and knowledgeable so he really ticks all the boxes.' One interviewee enthuses: 'Klaus is a clear professional in all aspects: technical knowledge, commercial awareness, effectiveness and client service.'", Chambers Europe 2018
- Ranked among the best lawyers in Capital Markets in the 2015-2021 editions of Chambers Europe
- "Klaus Ilmonen is ‘one of the few experienced lawyers in the Finnish IPO market’ ", Capital Markets, Legal 500, 2015
- Ranked among the best lawyers in the 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 editions (Helsinki: Capital Markets, Mergers and Acquisitions) of Best Lawyers®
Memberships and Positions of Trust
- Professor of Practice, Hanken School of Economics
- Member of the expert group on securities regulation of the Finnish Bar Association
- Managing director of the Mannerheim Foundation
Education and Professional Background
- Doctor of Laws, University of Helsinki, 2016
- Harvard Law School, Visiting Researcher, 2011 - 2012 (Jan.)
- Partner, Hannes Snellman, 2007
- Associate, Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, London, 1999 - 2002
- LL.M. (Stone Scholar), Columbia University, 1999