Jürgen Schlichting has extensive experience in the design and implementation of international projects, in management and corporate governance, and in cross-border business development for products and services. Clients have been international institutions (World Bank, EU, various ministries in Germany and abroad) as well as private companies of many different sectors. After many years of rendering services in countries abroad (Latin America, Asia, and Europe), today he is active with international market development and the formation of branch offices and subsidiaries in Switzerland and abroad, as well as with selected mandates as board member (executive and non-executive) of medium-sized companies.
Jürgen Schlichting is Managing Director and owner of SBC International GmbH, a small Swiss-based consulting firm with focus on (a) cross-border business development, (b) strategic planning + coordination of complex international projects, and (c) corporate supervisory and control. Some important mandates were: Market positioning, establishment of companies + JV, market screening +selection of partners in many countries: Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Bulgaria, Brazil, India, Middle East. Support of corporate units in 20 countries in the context of a long term globalisation strategy; Elaboration of corporate strategy focusing on core competences and market positioning; Acquisition of companies: analysis of competition and selection of targets; Preparation of initial public offering: management, organisation and market positioning; Market analysis for investment goods (worldwide); Marketing strategy for Brazilian companies in Germany + Europe; Setting up of Swiss subsidiaries. Clients: ABB, Deutsche Telekom, Equinix, Linedata Services, Postbank, TÜV Rheinland, World Bank, Interamerican Development Bank (IDB), Commission of the European Community, KfW, GTZ, Asian Development Bank (ADB), amongst others.
He studied economics at the Universities of Freiburg (Germany) and Basel (Switzerland), with a final examination: lic.rer.pol. from the University of Basel/Switzerland.
Jürgen Schlichting joined CBA in November 2015 as Consulting Professional and M&A Adviser.
You can access 2 million apps on your mobile devices, but what are they good for when the battery runs out? Nada, says entrepreneur Mario Aguilera, who learned the drawbacks of quick-draining batteries the hard way in the late 1990s while serving in the Bolivian army. Often living off the grid for weeks at a time with his special forces unit, he would become frustrated when his trips into the wilderness were cut short because he had to return to base and wait for his handheld GPS tracker and satellite phone to recharge.
Aguilera was in the jungle when it dawned on him that the answer to his problem was shining above his head. “Everything is going mobile, our computers and phones are mobile, so logic dictates that the most important part of technology — energy — has to go mobile, too,” he says. After he left the army, he founded the “mobile energy” company Tespack in Helsinki in 2013.
Tespack has developed a range of fast-charging mobile products to generate and store energy, including backpacks with removable solar panels and power packs. The target market for his products have been hikers and climbers who need smartphones for navigation and emergencies, as well as military and aid personnel who work in remote locations or in extreme weather.
Now, solar-powered batteries are hardly newsworthy. But Aguilera says his solar panels are unique on the market because they combine light weight, design and durability with efficiency — the amount of solar energy converted into electricity. Tespack’s clock in at 22%, much higher than average. He says that his customers already include the Finnish Defense Forces and the UN. But Aguilera’s ultimate goal is to “allow everyone to stay charged and become energy independent the moment they step outside of their homes”.
He is onto something. Dying batteries have long been a source of consumer frustration. In 2014, the research company GMI surveyed 1,000 people in Britain, and 89% cited battery life as the most influential factor when picking a device. Among the 18- to 24-year- olds polled, 29% ran out of power at least once a day.
Tespack works inside GE’s Energy Village, an incubator in Helsinki that currently houses about 10 startups and is recruiting more. GE’s “village chief,” Mikko Kauppinen, started the programme last year. A similar project, the Health Innovation Village, has already yielded several successful products.
Like other members of the village, Tespack has received help from GE energy experts who stop by to see their progress. “We show them what we are working on and they provide mentorship to validate our thoughts, because all of our ideas are new and experimental,” Aguilera says.
Because Tespack is a member of the energy village, its future products might one day be available to GE’s customers. For now, most of its products are aimed at consumers and are priced at below $104, including a solar panel the size of an airplane window. The panel connects with a portable battery that stores enough energy to charge a laptop up to two times, a tablet up to five times and a phone up to 13 times.
The company’s waterproof, scratch-resistant solar panels also can be swapped into any of Tespack’s bags. The wearable panels weigh just a half-pound each and can connect to one another. Several linked panels create what Aguilera describes as “a mobile, solar power plant.”
In 2017, the company will launch a series of products aimed at consumers in cities, including a palm-sized, USB-charged, portable power bank that charges in less than 7 minutes and can power a smartphone. Says Aguilera: “As technology evolves, we believe that in 20 years you will be able to charge everything while on the move.” Link
Source: GE
126 ha greenfield site on the Croatian/Adriatic coast, planned for the development of an integrated golf/tourism resort. The Project includes: 27-hole golf course, 5-star hotel, 170 rooms, 114 villas/apartments, and more infrastructure.
Highlights
- Concept and master plan development
- Financial feasibility studies
- Design and architectural planning
- Permitting for starting investment in place (building permit for villas/golf resort, location permit for hotel). Strong interest and support of local government/local community.
Alan Keschner - Entrepreneurial Executive - Engineering, industrial administration and business degrees. Substantial permanent and interim MD/CEO experience in private and listed companies. Executive and non-executive board representation, including sub-committee and company chairman roles. Broad merger and acquisition knowledge and has started, built and sold numerous businesses. Significant turnaround work with distressed entities, much of it on behalf of financial and investment institutions. Handled restructuring, growth initiatives, BEE partnerships, team development, business and asset sales and liquidations. Extensive global travel and international business experience. Close ties to financial institutions and venture capital/private equity entities. Understands company legislation, legal activities and corporate governance. Has had wide involvement in advisory, training and mentoring work, including at educational institutions. Worked in a wide range of industrial, service and trading industries, including manufacturing, automotive and wholesale/retail. Good knowledge of the spare parts, capital equipment and services sectors, such as maintenance and financing. Fully computer literate and sound knowledge of information systems, reporting and JSE requirements.
Alan is currently working as an independent adviser, focusing on:
• Interim Management / Leadership
• Mergers & Acquisitions / Business Broking
• Corporate / Business Advisory
• Capital / Debt Raising / Funding
• Distressed Business Turnarounds / Restructuring
• Strategy / Business Plan Formulation / Implementation
• Equity / BEE Partnership Introductions
• Executive Recruitment / Mentoring
• Active / Independent Non-Executive Directorships
Alan Keschner joined CBA as M&A Adviser in Johannesburg in October 2016.
NEW DELHI: Calendar 2016 was a year of big-sized merger and acquisition (M&A) deals for India Inc, with data showing a record high $72 billion worth of agreements during the year, even as the number of deals stood the same as in 2015.
At $72.4 billion, M&A deals rose 97.10 per cent in 2016 compared with those in 2015. The M&As announced in 2016 beat the record of $67 billion deals announced in 2007, thanks to 15 M&A deals of $1 billion or above during the year by. There were only four deals of this size in 2015.
Among the transactions announced, $33.1 billion worth of deals have already been executed. This is 9.6 per cent higher year on year in value terms ($30.2 billion in 2015), even though the number of completed deals fell 9.4 per cent. Read more
Demian Esser, MBA, finance professional with extensive deal origination and execution experience having invested and advised globally on M&A and private equity transactions with total deal volumes of more than US$35bn. In-depth industry know-how in the business and consumer services, transport and logistics, infrastructure, media, leisure & tourism sectors. Prior to founding Pedralbes Partners Demian was a Director at Citigroup’s investment bank, managing the EMEA (Europe, Middle East & Africa) transportation and services team. Prior to that Demian was a strategy management consultant with Accenture in their Products and Services practice in Berlin. MBA from IESE Business School, Barcelona and BA Hons in International Business Studies from the European Business School, London. German/Bolivian national and fluent in English, German and Spanish.
Demian Esser joined CBA in June 2016 as M&A Adviser from Mexico City, Mexico.
China's merger and acquisition market slows in 2016 following a record setting 2015, cooled by new policies on state-owned enterprises and tighter regulatory oversight on merger and acquisition deals. The exception to the trend was cross-border M&A, which look set to a record year in 2016.
There were 6,642 announced M&A deals in China with disclosed aggregate transaction value of US$540.6 billion in 2016, down 31% and 31.5% year-on-year respectively, according to data released by Chinese deal tracking firm ChinaVenture.
A total of 4,010 M&A deals with aggregate transaction value of US$253 billion were actually completed in 2016, down 23% and 26% compared to 2015, respectively.
Due to the weaker M&A market and implementation of new policies restricting back-door listings, there was also a steep decline in reverse merger deals that allow private companies to acquire a publicly listed companies to realize an initial public offering. Only 24 announced reverse merger deals were recorded last year, with US$34.5 billion in aggregate deal value, down 55.6% and 12% year-on-year.
Cross-border M&A is a bright spot, however, with US$200 billion in aggregate deal value recorded during the first ten months of 2016, far exceeding 2015's full-year US$103 billion figure. Cross-border deals are getting larger as well, with nearly 40 transactions carrying a price tag of over US$10 billion last year.
For the full year, a total of 285 cross-border M&A transactions worth US$47.1 billion were recorded in 2016, taking 7% and 19% of the country's total M&A market, respectively.
The Internet, IT and manufacturing sectors were the three most active industries, with 529, 515 and 487 deals completed last year. They took 14%, 13.8% and 13% of the total deal universe in terms of deal volume.
But in terms of actual dollar value of transactions, financial service, energy and mining, manufacturing was the most actively, with US$39 billion, US$25 billion and US$18 billion aggregate deal value recorded for the year of 2016 respectively.
Industry consolidation among state-owned enterprises remains a strong driver of domestic Chinese M&A. China Petroleum Capital’s US$11.3 billion spin-off to Jinan Diesel Engine and China Yangtze Power Co., Ltd's US$11.5 billion acquisition of Chuanyun Electrical & Plumbing are the biggest ongoing and completed deals respectively.
Source: CHINA MONEY NETWORK
The Impressive XVII Century Mansion – for sale is one of the last unique properties on Majorca
This impressive XVII Century Mansion is situated in a unique and privileged area in the hills of the Tramuntana range, only a few kilometres from Palma de Majorca, Balearic Islands, Spain. The plot covers an area of 300 hectares, of which 3.600m² are delightful and well maintained gardens. A complete restoration of the property was completed in 2006, providing top technology together with the highest quality of fixtures and fittings. The property has a total constructed area of over 5.600m² and offers 80 bedrooms, including 10 suites all with shower bathrooms and jacuzzi. The other 70 bedrooms have bathrooms en suite.
The Manor House has several lounges and dining areas, a professional industrial kitchen and a superb outside/ summer kitchen enabling maximum enjoyment of the beautiful summer weather.
There are various guest houses with five bedrooms en suite, living room and kitchen, swimming pool, separate personal accommodation, games house, security accommodation, plus covered parking area for 17 vehicles.
This mansion could be converted to an ideal 5-star luxury boutique hotel for very special guests, that can also enjoy the nearby golf course.
Gregory O. Burke holds a Master Degree (MBA) in Logistics Management from Greenwich Maritime Institute, University of Greenwich/Marylebone University, Bangor, Wales, UK, a Diploma in Law and Taxation from Bournemouth University, a Postgraduate study in Maritime Policy, International Economics of Shipping, Public International Law, Maritime Security, Postgraduate Certificate from Greenwich Maritime Institute, and Diploma from the University of Detroit Mercy.
Since 2014, Gregory has been a President at Standard Oil Company USA, focusing on the Caribbean. The Standard Oil Company based in Dallas, Texas is oil and gas traders, renewable energy plant builders, and waste to energy consultants.
Since 2013 Gregory Burke has been a Managing Partner at Adam Global with its head office based in Dubai, a leading corporate service firm, delivering international business solutions and a wide range of comprehensive corporate services, assisting companies and entrepreneurs establish and expand their businesses seamlessly across international borders. With operations around the world, delivering comprehensive business solutions, Adam Global are the global experts who understand the local needs.
