A total of 40 transactions closed over the course of the judging period and a general consensus that Rothschild & Co is a “very steady adviser” and that “they understand their clients” won it the financial adviser award for the EMEA region.

This was one of the most strongly-debated categories to be put in front of the IJInvestor Awards judging panel, taking over that mantle from law firms which usually stall proceedings with elongated debate over well-crafted submissions.

However, Rothschild won over the judges on Judgment Day with one saying that “it is particularly impressive on deal count alone, never mind the quality of deals they have worked on” and another admiring it for taking “a long-term view of relationships”.

The 40 transactions that Rothschild completed over the judging period – 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 – have an aggregate value of more than $30 billion, providing clients with independent and integrated strategic, M&A, debt and equity financing advice.

The submission (wisely) referenced the IJ league tables, pointing out that “we have completed the most transactions in EMEA – illustrating our position as the leading financial adviser in infrastructure”.

Beyond the overwhelming sense that the majority of judges simply admired Rothschild for its market position, they were won over by its diverse offering – by geography, sector, client base, deal size, product.

For example, Rothschild acted for Vodafone on the €2 billion IPO of Vantage Towers (which had a €12 billion market cap) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange; alongside advising Helios on the $350 million stake disposal in Axxela, Nigeria’s largest gas distribution network; Basalt on the SEK 15.3 billion (€1.5bn) take-private of Nobina, the Nordic’s leading transport service provider; Moto, the UK’s largest MSA, on a transformative £1 billion refinancing; and Suez on the carveout of “New Suez”, a €10.4 billion disposal of its French water, recycling, and technology divisions to an infrastructure investor consortium.

The submission states: “The breadth of our transactions – from regulated utilities to Core+ communications infrastructure via renewables, midstream, power, and transport, and from UK and Nordics to Nigeria and Poland – underlines the reach we offer as advisers.

“One notable example is our advice to Ardian Infrastructure on its acquisition of Mila, Iceland’s leading end-to-end telecom infrastructure provider, from Síminn hf – one of the largest M&A deals in Icelandic history, at kr78bn ($600m).

“Síminn launched a 2-phase auction process in summer 2021. We were appointed in H1, with a remit to enhance Ardian’s competitiveness through a creative approach.

“To strengthen Ardian’s bid, we proactively engaged with key local stakeholders very early in the process. Following fruitful discussions, Ardian was able to form a partnership with several local pension funds, offering them up to a 20% stake in the company.

“Subsequently we positioned the consortium to successfully pre-empt the auction, through an attractive proposal.”