Milbank team advises SMBC, HSBC, and Malaysian and Indonesian banks in the acquisition of Martabe Mine by international consortium

Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP acted on the behalf of the senior lenders in the US$775 million acquisition by an international consortium of Indonesia’s Martabe mine, one of the world’s largest gold mines.

The Milbank team represented SMBC, HSBC, Malaysia’s Maybank, and Jakarta-based Bank Mandiri in the acquisition of a 95% stake in Martabe by a consortium led by EMR Capital Greenwich, headquartered in London, and U.S.-based Farallon Capital Management. The seller was Hong Kong-based mining investment company G-Resources Group Ltd.

One of the largest leveraged buyouts of a gold mine on record, the sale came together in a series of complex negotiations spanning more than two years.

The Milbank team representing the senior lenders was led by partner Jacqueline Chan (Singapore) and included associates Pearl Grover (Singapore) and Rosalind Yusman (Singapore), with assistance from partner James Warbey (London) and associate Robert Wyse Jackson (London).

Ms. Chan commented: “Milbank is pleased to have represented the lender group in this significant acquisition, which underscores the confidence among global banks in the resources of the Martabe mine in the foreseeable future.”

Located in northern Sumatra, the western-most island of Indonesia, the Martabe mine produced more than 302,000 ounces of gold in 2015 and over 2.5 million ounces of silver.

Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is a leading international law firm that provides innovative legal services to clients around the world. Founded in New York 150 years ago, Milbank has offices in Beijing, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Munich, São Paulo, Seoul, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, DC. Milbank’s lawyers collaborate across practices and offices to help the world’s leading commercial, financial and industrial enterprises, as well as institutions, individuals and governments, achieve their strategic objectives.