Dual Track
The shareholders of Oldenburgische Landesbank AG (OLB) – including the three major shareholders represented by Grovepoint Investment Management, Apollo Global Management (Apollo) and Texas Teacher’s Retirement System (TRS) – sold all shares in the bank to the French Crédit Mutuel Group. The purchaser is Targo Deutschland GmbH, a subsidiary of Crédit Mutuel and parent company of Targo Bank. The share purchase agreement, subject to regulatory approval, was signed on 19 March 2025. At the same time, the shareholders decided not to proceed with the IPO that had been prepared in parallel as part of the dual track.
Longstanding Advice
Grovepoint, Apollo and TRS transformed OLB – originally a regional bank in Northern Germany, formerly part of the Dresdner Bank/Allianz group – into a nationwide institution with total assets of approx. EUR 35 billion. This involved several bank acquisitions, most recently Degussa Bank, all of which were advised by Sernetz Schäfer for Grovepoint. An IPO was considered as a next strategic step. In parallel, the investors held sale discussions with the Crédit Mutuel Group.
Sernetz Schäfer’s Düsseldorf office has advised Grovepoint since its entry into the German banking market in 2013. In the complex dual-track process, the firm advised on IPO matters (in particular stock exchange and capital markets law, listing procedures, underwriting agreement) as well as on corporate and financial regulatory matters in the context of the sale. The team consisted of Dr. Thomas Eckhold (lead partner) and Dr. Jonas Schürger.