DLA Piper advises Yamaha Motor on the acquisition of eBike drive unit subsidiary of Brose

DLA Piper has advised global client Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. on the acquisition of Brose Antriebstechnik GmbH & Co. KG (BAT), the bicycle drive unit subsidiary of German automotive parts supplier Brose SE. BAT has specialized in the development and manufacture of bicycle drive units for the eBike market since 2014. The acquisition is subject to applicable regulatory approvals.

Yamaha Motor will acquire BAT through its newly established German subsidiary, Yamaha Motor eBike Systems GmbH, which will commence operations in June 2025 and will enable Yamaha Motor to expand and strengthen its presence in Europe, offering a wider range of high-quality products and customized solutions for the eBike market.

With the acquisition of BAT, Yamaha Motor aims to leverage BAT's development capabilities in eBike technology to further strengthen the planning and development of new products. At the same time, the establishment of a development site in Europe aims to quickly capture market needs, respond to local customer requirements, attract new customers, and improve sourcing opportunities in the European market.

Takeo Kitanaka, Executive Officer and Head of Global Risk, Compliance, Legal & IP Center, who led the transaction on Yamaha Motor's side as legal lead: "Once again, the dedicated efforts and excellent guidance of the DLA Piper team proved to be a core driver in enabling Yamaha Motor to successfully conclude a challenging cross-border transaction. It’s always a pure joy to navigate the rough waters with this talented team."

The DLA Piper team was led by Counsel Dr Isaschar Nicolaysen and Partner Dr Benjamin Parameswaran, with Senior Associate Jan Schlaak in the core team (all Corporate/M&A, Hamburg). The Corporate/M&A team was also supported by Associate Dr Tom Lasar.

Additionally, the team included Partners Dr Henriette Norda (Employment, Hamburg), Dr Thilo von Bodungen (Commercial, Munich), Dr Nico Brunotte (IT, Hamburg), Dr Burkhard Führmeyer (IP, Frankfurt), Verena Grentzenberg (Data Protection, Hamburg), Dr Konrad Rohde (Tax), Fabian Mühlen (Real Estate), Dr Wolfram Distler (Finance, all Frankfurt), Counsel Dr Enno Ahlenstiel (Antitrust), Dr Thilo Streit (Public Law, both Cologne), Georg Haberkorn (Munich), Jörn Manhart (both Pensions, Dusseldorf), Raffaella Rusin (Tax, Munich), Senior Associates Dr Katharina Fischer (Employment, Hamburg), Marisa Machacek (IP, Frankfurt), Dr Betina Fischer (Hamburg), Gerald Baumgartner (both Commercial, Munich), Ilgin Ayhan (Finance, Frankfurt), David Schele (Data Protection, Hamburg), Andreas Rüdiger (Data Protection, Cologne), Associates Julia Goetzendorff (Antitrust, Cologne), Dr Julian Zimara (IP, Frankfurt), Jonas Riesenkampff (IT, Hamburg), Tina Popp (Real Estate, Frankfurt), Janina Strunk (Regulatory, Cologne), and Transaction Specialist Arne Klingelhöfer (Finance, Frankfurt).