Hogan Lovells advises DWS on major investment in Deutsche GigaNetz

Press releases | 28 July 2022

Led by Frankfurt-based partners Alexander Stefan Rieger and Joerg Herwig, global law firm Hogan Lovells has advised the Pan-European Infrastructure III fund of DWS Group on a major investment in German fiber-optic business Deutsche GigaNetz GmbH, making DWS the second major investor in Deutsche GigaNetz alongside InfraRed Capital Partners.

The investment by DWS aims at increasing the capabilities of Deutsche GigaNetz GmbH to deliver on and grow beyond its initial €3 billion business plan, with the ambition to connect more than one million households with fiber-to-the-home (FttH) and to drive digitalization in Germany accordingly.

The founders as well as the current main investor InfraRed Capital Partners will remain as shareholders.

Alexander Stefan Rieger, relationship partner for the infrastructure funds of DWS, commented:

"Advising DWS on another successful and particularly complex transaction underlines our strong capability to deliver at the niche interface between infrastructure and corporate law matters."

The transaction is subject to customary approvals, in particular of the European Commission.

Hogan Lovells advised DWS on all transactional legal aspects of its investment in Deutsche GigaNetz GmbH. DC Advisory acted as financial advisor to DWS and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton advised on regulatory approvals.

Hogan Lovells team for DWS

Dr Alexander Stefan Rieger (Partner), Johannes Gross (Senior Associate), Camilla Froehlich, Dr Joscha Mueller, Julian Schmidt, Pascal Wagenfuehr (Associates), Janina Fey (Trainee Solicitor) (all Infrastructure M&A, Frankfurt);

Dr Joerg Herwig (Partner), Alexandra Willm (Senior Associate), Jennifer Hofmann (Associate) (all Private Equity, Frankfurt);

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

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

Judith Altenburg (Associate, Real Estate, Frankfurt);

Dr Carla Luh (Partner), Marco Weibrecht (Senior Associate), Kathy Chang (Associate) (all Infrastructure, Energy, Resources and Projects/ Finance, Hamburg);

Dr Thomas Frank (Senior Associate, Pensions, Munich).