Osborne Clarke, the international legal practice, recently advised Audria on its acquisition of Tandem Property Asset Management, a deal that gives the tech-driven real estate services platform its first foothold in the UK.
The transaction brings Tandem into Audria as the fifth company in the group, alongside Newsec, Novier, Sveaviken PM and Avy, and extends a Nordic and Baltic platform that already includes more than 2,600 professionals managing over €100 billion of real estate assets.
For William Nicolson, Partner in Osborne Clarke’s UK private equity team, the transaction is significant not just because it adds another business to the group, but because it marks a clear step in Audria’s international expansion.
Nicolson described the acquisition as “a strong signal of confidence in the UK real estate market” and highlighted the way technology and data-driven asset management are reshaping the sector. His comments also point to the wider rationale behind the deal: combining Tandem’s local property and asset management capabilities with the scale, technology and resources of a broader European platform.
Osborne Clarke advised Audria across the acquisition, drawing on its corporate and real estate capabilities to support the buyer’s entry into a new market.
The legal context is important because this is more than a straightforward domestic acquisition. Audria is an international platform expanding into the UK through the purchase of an established local operator, which means the transaction sits at the intersection of cross-border M&A, investor-backed growth and real estate services.
That fits closely with Nicolson’s own practice. He advises financial sponsors, management teams and portfolio companies on transactions including management buy-outs, exits, restructurings and buy-and-build strategies, and has worked with some of the UK’s most acquisitive businesses on the roll-out of acquisition programmes.
In his comments on the deal, Nicolson also pointed to Osborne Clarke’s ability to combine corporate, long-term investor and real estate expertise as an important factor in delivering the transaction. That integrated approach mirrors the firm’s wider M&A model, where specialist lawyers across corporate, tax, competition, employment and other areas are brought together around a transaction.
For Tandem, joining Audria creates access to a larger international group while allowing the business to retain its UK market knowledge and existing operating presence.
Tandem brings expertise across property and asset management, while Audria provides a broader Nordic and Baltic platform with significant scale. The combined proposition is intended to create more scope for investment in technology, innovation and data-led services, while also giving Audria a platform from which to develop further in the UK.
That growth angle is central to the transaction. Tandem becomes part of a larger group with ambitions to expand across markets, while Audria gains an established UK operating base rather than having to build one from scratch.
William Nicolson is a Partner in Osborne Clarke’s UK private equity team, where he advises sponsors, management teams and portfolio companies on a broad range of transactions. His work includes management buy-outs, exits, buy-and-build strategies, restructurings and general corporate matters.
He also leads the Osborne Clarke Portfolio Group, a cross-disciplinary team focused on supporting investors and management teams throughout the ownership cycle. His profile reflects a strong emphasis on practical transaction execution, including the use of legal technology to make acquisition processes more efficient.
Osborne Clarke is an international legal practice with more than 1,600 lawyers across 27 locations worldwide. Its M&A team advises on more than 600 transactions each year, ranging from mid-market deals to multi-billion-pound acquisitions, with a particular focus on complex and cross-border transactions.
Audria: Osborne Clarke acted as legal adviser, with William Nicolson leading the team. Byrne Wallace Shields LLP advised on Irish law aspects of the transaction.
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