Credit Suisse Acquires DLJ

On November 2 and 3, 2000, Credit Suisse Group (Credit Suisse) completed its US$11.6 billion acquisition of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, Inc. (DLJ), a leading US-based investment bank and financial services provider owned by AXA Financial, Inc. (AXA). AXA received about US$2.3 billion in cash and 25 million shares of Credit Suisse stock for its 88.6 million shares of DLJ. Under the terms of the deal, Credit Suisse is to buy back about US$1.2 billion of its shares from AXA.

Credit Suisse, Switzerland’s second largest banking group after UBS AG, already has interests in private banking, asset management and insurance in addition to investment banking. Acquiring DLJ gives Credit Suisse a leading presence in junk bonds and merchant banking, as well as a retail online-brokerage business and a strong back-office business in clearing stock trades. The combined firms, which will operate as Credit Suisse First Boston, will have equity capital of nearly US$24 billion, more than 26,500 employees and assets totaling more than US$600 million.

Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP worked with Roger Wiegley of Credit Suisse’s legal department and James O’Connell of Shearman & Sterling in relation to the Canadian regulatory aspects of the transaction. The Faskens team was coordinated by Tony Baldanza (competion and foreign investment), and included Robert Elliott and Claudia Feldkamp (banking), Cathy Singer (securities) and Kathleen Hanly (tax).

Canadian representation for DLJ was provided by Mark Katz (competition and foreign investment) and Scott Hyman (banking) of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP (previously Davies, Ward & Beck LLP) and Jennifer Campbell (securities) from Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
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Lawyer(s)

Claudia D. Feldkamp Kathleen S.M. Hanly Jennifer L. Campbell Mark C. Katz Robert E. Elliott Scott R. Hyman Cathy Singer James J. O'Connell Anthony F. Baldanza

Firm(s)

Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP Shearman & Sterling LLP Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP