Hogan Lovells advises iCON on the acquisition of Strategic Fiber Networks Group

Press releases | 04 November 2021

Led by Frankfurt partners Alexander Stefan Rieger, Jörg Herwig and Nikolai Sokolov international law firm Hogan Lovells has advised iCON Infrastructure Partners V (iCON) on the acquisition of a controlling interest in three German fiber-related businesses, ropa GmbH & Co KG, NGN Telecom GmbH and Wisotel GmbH (together the “SFN Group”). The sale is already completed and was carried out by companies led by LABcom Investment GmbH.

The investment in the SFN Group is iCON's first investment in the German telecommunications sector. It forms the basis of a wider strategy to form a telecommunications platform and sustainably improve connectivity in underserved rural areas in Germany. The SFN Group plans to grow fiber network coverage via follow-on acquisitions and further network development.

Alexander Stefan Rieger, client relationship partner for iCON, added: "Assisting iCON with the successful entry into the highly competitive German fiber market does not only underline the ongoing activity levels in the sector but also marks the next chapter of our strong digital infra track record since the beginning of the pandemic. We now look forward to growing this new platform together with iCON and to contributing to the digital transformation in Germany".

Hogan Lovells team for iCON V

Dr. Alexander Rieger (Partner, lead), Johannes Groß, Pascal Wagenführ, Jan Hendrik Müller, Katharina Baunach, Camilla Fröhlich (Associates) (all Infrastructure, Energy, Resources and Projects, Frankfurt);

Dr. Jörg Herwig (Partner, lead), Nikolai Sokolov (Partner, lead), Alexandra Willm, Aaron Bär (Associates) (all Private Equity, Frankfurt);

Dr. Carla Luh (Partner), Christian Martin Hermanussen (Senior Associate), Jens Velten (Associate) (all Infrastructure, Energy, Resources and Projects/ Finance, Hamburg);

Dr. Mathias Schönhaus (Partner), Anja Brunthaler (Associate) (both Tax, Dusseldorf);

Aaron Burchell (Counsel, Tax, London);

Prof. Dr. Fabian Pfuhl (Counsel), Anne Schmitt (Senior Associate) (both Intellectual Property, Frankfurt);

Dr. Kerstin Neighbour (Partner), Dr. Charlotte Baecker (Associate) (both Employment, Frankfurt).