It is a curiosity of the legal profession that, the larger the deal, the less likely the law firm is to have reached an agreement on fees. As Barclays licks its wounds after six months of chasing ABN Amro comes to nought, rumours of the overall adviser fees it will have to pay – to add insult to injury – are of epic disproportion.
According to one City partner, in contrast to reported sums of up to £800m, the Barclays/ABN prospectus sees fees capped at £197m. Now that the bid has failed, they are likely to fall significantly below that. That is still, by anyone’s estimation, a sizeable sum and lead advisers Clifford Chance (CC) and Sullivan & Cromwell are facing the inevitable task of discussing their portion of the pot on the £80bn takeover bid.
