12/21/2021
Citizens Advises Best Lawyers® on its Acquisition by Abry Partners
PROVIDENCE, RI – Citizens M&A Advisory announced today that it served as the exclusive financial advisor to Best Lawyers®, the oldest and most respected peer-review ranking service in the global legal community, on its acquisition by Abry Partners, a Boston-based investment firm. Best Lawyers was previously a portfolio company of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners (“LLCP”), a Los Angeles-based middle-market private equity firm.
Best Lawyers is the leading provider of rankings and subscription-based brand management solutions to the legal market. Best Lawyers’ print and digital publications reach nearly 20 million readers. The company currently conducts its peer-reviewed surveys in 76 countries across the globe and conducts multiple annual ranking surveys including, Best Lawyers, U.S. News-Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms,” and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.
Phil Greer, chief executive officer of Best Lawyers, said: “The Citizens M&A Advisory team was immensely helpful in this process. They were able to clearly articulate our complex business model, compelling value proposition and extensive growth opportunities to the investor community.”
Tannaz Chapman, managing director at LLCP, said: “Citizens delivered an exceptional outcome for LLCP in this process. They demonstrated a thorough understanding of the business and drove a competitive and fast-paced process. We greatly appreciate the efforts made by Tom Donahue, Steve Dyott and the entire Citizens team.”
Tom Donahue, managing director at Citizens M&A Advisory, said: “We could not be more excited about the Best Lawyers and Abry partnership. The Best Lawyers team has built strong relationships and earned unmatched credibility in the legal industry. The partnership with Abry positions Best Lawyers for its next phase of growth, as the company continues to grow its core offerings and expand on its brand management solutions.”
Citizens M&A Advisory specializes in middle-market mergers and acquisitions. Citizens combines sector intelligence with a client-focused approach to realize our clients' true value. The Citizens team has closed more than 175 transactions in the last five years and has more than 70 M&A professionals specializing in a range of industries across the United States. Citizens M&A Advisory is part of Citizens Capital Markets, Inc., a subsidiary of Citizens Financial Group (NYSE: CFG).
About Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with $187.0 billion in assets as of September 30, 2021. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens offers a broad range of retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. Citizens helps its customers reach their potential by listening to them and by understanding their needs in order to offer tailored advice, ideas and solutions. In Consumer Banking, Citizens provides an integrated experience that includes mobile and online banking, a 24/7 customer contact center and the convenience of approximately 3,000 ATMs and approximately 1,000 branches in 11 states in the New England, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions. Consumer Banking products and services include a full range of banking, lending, savings, wealth management and small business offerings. In Commercial Banking, Citizens offers a broad complement of financial products and solutions, including lending and leasing, deposit and treasury management services, foreign exchange, interest rate and commodity risk management solutions, as well as loan syndication, corporate finance, merger and acquisition, and debt and equity capital markets capabilities. More information is available at www.citizensbank.com or visit us on Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook.
The testimonials presented are applicable to the individuals depicted and may not be representative of the experience of others. The testimonials are not paid and are not indicative of future performance or success.
