Dua Associates Advises Bel Group, The French Cheese Maker In Its Joint Venture With Britannia Industries
Bel Group, a world leader in branded cheese and a significant player in the healthy snacking segment with iconic global brands like 'The Laughing Cow' entered into a joint venture in India with Britannia Industries to carry out/undertake the business of development, manufacturing, marketing, distribution, trading and selling, etc., of cheese products in India and other specific markets in Asia. As part of this transaction, Bel SA, France has acquired 49% stake from Britannia Industries Limited in Britannia Dairy Private Limited (BDPL) to develop BDPL as a joint venture between Bel SA and Britannia Industries Limited in terms of the transaction documents entered by the parties.
Dua Associates' team led by Partners, Salil Gulati, Shailendra Singh Somvanshi and Sahil Dhawan along with a pool of Associates acted on behalf of Bel Group on all the legal aspects of this deal including the conduct of legal due diligence exercise, drafting, negotiation and finalization of the various transaction documents, advised on various legal aspects including foreign investment, regulatory, intellectual property rights, operational issues, etc., and also assisted the parties in successfully closing the transaction.
Khaitan & Co acted on behalf of Britannia Industries.
Dua Associates has been working for Bel Group since their India entry in 2017 and acted as their legal advisors during its journey in India since then, including the launch of Bel's iconic brand 'The Laughing Cow' cheese in India through its wholly owned subsidiary Fromageries Bel India Private Limited.
This joint venture between Bel and Britannia is a significant step for Bel and Britannia Groups' development in the Asian market to accelerate the penetration of the fast growing cheese category in India/Asia.
About Dua Associates: Dua Associates is a leading law firm in India with an over thirty five year old track record of delivering critical legal solutions for its clients including various Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, governments and SMEs. The Firm is widely recognized for the depth of experienced legal talent and the significant experience of its 250+ professionals including 75 partners.