Ayo Thomas

Ayo Thomas advises clients on a range of transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, co-investments and consortium deals, and carve-out transactions. He particularly focuses on counseling financial sponsors, such as sovereign wealth funds, family offices and private equity funds, across multiple asset classes, including private equity, digital infrastructure, real estate, sports and entertainment.

Mr. Thomas’ experience at Skadden includes advising:

• Fanatics Betting & Gambling on its strategic joint venture with Momentum to operate commercial gaming activities in the UAE
• multiple sovereign wealth funds in relation to a number of co-investment transactions involving assets based in the U.S. and Europe (including the U.K.)

Prior to joining Skadden, Mr. Thomas worked at a “Magic Circle” firm in London as an associate in the private equity and financial sponsors group.

His representations prior to joining Skadden include advising:

• DigitalBridge on transactions in relation to Vantage Data Centers Europe, its European hyperscale data centre platform, including its:
  • €2.5 billion investment partnership with long-term investors, including DigitalBridge, MEAG and Infranity, in relation to Vantage Data Centers’ stabilised assets across Europe
  • €1.5 billion investment in Vantage Data Centers’ EMEA platform by AustralianSuper
  • €1.4 billion investment in Vantage Data Centers’ EMEA platform by GIC and MEAG
• DigitalBridge on the establishment of its AtlasEdge joint venture with Liberty Global and Telefonica to establish a European edge data centre platform
• HgCapital on transactions in relation to team.blue, a leading European enabler for entrepreneurs and SMBs, including:
  • the €1.4 billion recapitalisation and refinancing of team.blue
  • the €4.8 billion investment in team.blue by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) and Sofina
  • various corporate matters, including leaver/joiner events, liquidity events and bolt-on transactions
• HgCapital on its investment in Focus Group, one of the U.K.’s leading providers of essential business technology to SMEs
• a joint venture comprising GIC and Greystar on the £3.2 billion acquisition of Student Roost, a leading U.K. student accommodation provider, from Brookfield
• ManCapital on various governance matters relating to its portfolio company Right to Dream, a leading group of football academies and professional football clubs across Ghana, Denmark, Egypt and the U.S.