Lawyers from the Bristol office of Osborne Clarke have advised on two major deals in the fintech and creative sectors.
A cross-firm team worked with investor BGF on its £16.5m investment in leading B2B platform Twenty7tec while its corporate team helped the shareholders of New Commercial Arts (NCA), a leading independent creative and customer experience agency, on its sale to WPP, the world’s largest advertising group. 
Bournemouth-based Twenty7tec, which was founded in 2014, streamlines the entire mortgage process, from initial product search and sourcing through to application submission and completion.
The platform is used every day by more than 16,000 mortgage, protection and wealth advisers use its platform. BGF’s investment will support further significant growth and expansion in the UK.
The Osborne Clarke advising BGF included partner and head of the firm’s tax group Tracey Wright, plus Olivier Jacquelin, an associate in the corporate practice, and associate director Rhiannon Jones, who provided incentives advice.
The team was led by corporate partner Rob Hayes with associate director Robert Pook, senior associate Sian Daly and associate John Annan.
Tax advice was also provided by partner Mat Oliver and senior associate Anna Reynolds while incentives advice also came from partner Michael Carter, associate Maryam Khalifa and senior associate Stuart Rose.
BGF investor Duncan Wade, who is based in its Thames Valley office, said: “It was great to be supported by the Osborne Clarke team on our investment into the company.
“There were multiple moving parts to the transaction so to have the team’s expert specialist guidance and commercial pragmatism really helped us navigate through the legal process.”
Rob Hayes added: “It was a real pleasure to support BGF on such a high-profile transaction and, as such, we were delighted to play a role on the deal. I am sure the collaboration will be a fantastic success.”
Osborne Clarke’s team working with NCA’s shareholders was led by partner Chris King and included senior associate Sarah Mitchell, with partner Tracey Wright and senior associate Anna Reynolds advising on tax.
NCA, which becomes part of WPP’s Ogilvy subsidiary following the acquisition, was founded in 2020 by a team that included industry leaders James Murphy and David Golding. It became the fastest-growing agency in the UK last year.
Since its inception, it has worked with local and global clients including Sainsbury’s, MoneySuperMarket, Vodafone, Nandos, Paramount+, Alzheimer’s Society and Cityfibre.
James Murphy said: “Joining the Ogilvy creative network is an incredible opportunity for NCA. Osborne Clarke’s expertise, led by Chris King’s calm guidance and experience, has helped ensure a smooth and successful transaction. Osborne Clarke completely understand our sector and speak our language and that has made working with them again a pleasure.”
Osborne Clarke’s corporate team works closely with companies in the advertising, marketing and creative sectors, ranging from global businesses to fast-growth start-ups and market challengers, while its international venture capital team is recognised as a leading European practice advising companies in tech-enabled industries.
