Keir MacLennan
Kirkland & Ellis International LLP
keir.maclennan@kirkland.com
M +44 78 6725 4581

Overview
Keir is a corporate partner in the London office of Kirkland & Ellis International LLP. He advises private equity clients on mergers and acquisitions, carve-outs, take-privates and exits across all sectors.
He has previously been seconded to leading private equity firm Warburg Pincus as an investment professional in their Hong Kong office.
In 2019, Keir featured in Legal Week’s “40 Under 40: The Rising Stars in Private Equity”.
Experience
Representative Matters
Since joining Kirkland, Keir has advised:
- Hellman & Friedman on the investment in Mehiläinen
- Apollo and Oaktree-backed ABC Technologies on the take-private of TI Fluid Systems
- Apollo-backed The Restaurant Group in its acquisition of its outstanding stake in the Wagamama from Conversion Venture Capital
- Consortium of CVC Private Equity Funds, Nordic Capital and ADIA on the £5.4 billion recommended cash acquisition of Hargreaves Lansdown
- J.M. Huber Corporation on the sale of CP Kelco to Tate & Lyle
- AA, TowerBrook Capital Partners and Warburg Pincus on Stonepeak’s investment in AA
- Apollo on its recommended all-cash acquisition of The Restaurant Group
- A consortium led by Sandbrook Capital on the acquisition of NeXtWind Capital
- Gen II Fund Services on the acquisition of Crestbridge
- Nordic Capital on:
- the sale of Sunrise Medical to Platinum Equity;
- a joint venture with Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board to invest in Advanz Pharma;
- the acquisition of ActiveViam; and
- the sale of Bladt Industries to CS Wind.
- Allwyn on:
- the acquisition of stake in Instant Win Gaming Limited;
- the acquisition of the Camelot Lottery Solutions Group from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board; and
- the acquisition of Camelot UK.
- Sandbrook Capital on:
- the equity commitment in Voltwise Power; and
- $500 million partnership with PSP Investments to Fund Havfram.
- Francisco Partners on its acquisition of Kobalt
- Warburg Pincus on:
- the investment in Aztec Group
- the sale of its remaining stake in Reiss to NEXT plc;
- its acquisition of a majority stake in Epassi Group, alongside TA Associates;
- the sale of Once For All to GTCR;
- the merger of equals with Norstella to form an end-to-end life sciences solutions provider; and
- the acquisition of Pharma Intelligence from Informa PLC.
Prior to joining Kirkland, Keir advised:
- Hellman & Friedman on:
- the £1.85 billion disposal of Wood Mackenzie to Verisk Analytics, Inc.;
- the acquisition of TeamSystem, the Italian software business;
- the takeover offer for leading payment services provider Nets A/S;
- the merger of Nets with the Concardis Payment Group;
- the €2.85 billion sale of Nets Corporate Services business to Mastercard;
- the €7.8 billion all-share merger of Nets into Nexi;
- the acquisition of a minority equity stake in Action, Europe’s leading non-food discount retailer; and
- the acquisition by Allfunds Bank of Credit Suisse’s open architecture investment fund activities, Credit Suisse InvestLab and its strategic partnership with BNP Paribas.
- Warburg Pincus on:
- the acquisition of Reiss, a fashion brand and retail store chain, from the Reiss family;
- the sale of a stake in Reiss to Next plc;
- the establishment of McGill & Partners, a specialist insurance broker;
- the acquisition of Nirvana Developments, an Indonesian real estate developer;
- the investment in Vincom Retail, a Vietnamese real estate developer; and
- the investment in ESR Cayman, an Asian logistics developer.
- Permira on its investment in Catawiki, a curated online market place for special objects.
- Centerbridge on its acquisition of Canopius from Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance Inc.
- The founders of True Potential on their agreement to sell a majority stake to Cinven.
- Tesco on:
- the $10.6 billion sale of its businesses in Thailand and Malaysia;
- the merger with Booker Group;
- the disposal of Dobbies Garden Centres; and
- the joint venture in China with CRE.
- AB InBev on the €7.3 billion sale of its Central and Eastern European European business to Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd.
- Aberdeen Asset Management on its all-share merger with Standard Life.
Prior Experience
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, London
- Partner (2019–2021)
- Associate (2010–2019)
Jones Day, London
- Associate (2007–2010)
- Trainee Solicitor (2005–2007)
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Credentials
Admissions & Qualifications
- 2007, Admitted to practice as a Solicitor of England and Wales
Education
- Nottingham Law SchoolLegal Practice Course2005
- University of BristolLL.B.Hons2004
News &
Insights
- Press Release Kirkland Advises Hellman & Friedman on Investment in Mehiläinen
- Press Release Kirkland Advised Apollo Funds on Reorganization and Refinancing of The Restaurant Group
- Press Release Kirkland Advises ABC Technologies on Recommended Offer for TI Fluid Systems plc
- Press Release Kirkland Advises Warburg Pincus on Strategic Investment in Aztec Group
- Press Release Kirkland Advises Consortium of CVC Private Equity Funds, Nordic Capital and ADIA on £5.4 Billion Recommended Cash Acquisition of Hargreaves Lansdown