Ariel White-Tsimikalis

Ariel White-Tsimikalis is a partner in the firm’s Technology and Life Sciences group and Capital Markets practice in London. She specializes in advising corporates (with a particular focus on growth companies), underwriting banks and private equity and VC investors on equity capital markets transactions (including IPOs, secondary offerings and private placements) and general public company advisory matters. She is a member of the firm’s ESG & Impact and Public Company Advisory groups and regularly advises listed companies and regulated entities on their ESG obligations, particularly on governance matters. She is also a member of Goodwin’s Women’s Health & Wellness group and serves on the firm’s Steering Committee focused on the ESG implications of the US Supreme Court Dobbs decision for the firm and its clients. Ariel has particular experience advising banks and other financial institutions, having spent time on secondment at global investment banks Jefferies and Citi.

Drawing on her cultural background, Ariel has a keen interest in the emerging markets of Greece and Africa particularly in the Tech sector.

Prior to joining Goodwin, Ariel was a partner in Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner’s M&A and Corporate Finance team in London, where she also served as the Global Co-Leader of the firm’s Banking sector group. She previously spent over 10 years in the London offices of Davis Polk & Wardwell and Latham Watkins. Ariel began her legal career at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer where she trained and qualified.

Her representative experience includes:

Tech

• AIM-quoted tinyBuild, Inc. on its US$12 million fundraise through a combination of a placing to institutional investors, a private placement with a strategic investor, an open offer to qualifying stockholders and a direct subscription and underwriting arrangement with the founder and CEO
• A leading global investment banking, securities, and investment management firm as joint global coordinator to TeamViewer, a leading provider of remote connectivity solutions, on its IPO on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange achieving a valuation of €5.2 billion making it one of the biggest IPOs in Europe in 2019**
• A leading global investment banking, securities, and investment management firm as joint global coordinator to Prosus, a spin-off of JSE-listed South African consumer internet group Naspers, on its IPO on Euronext Amsterdam becoming one of the largest tech companies listed in Europe**
• Mayfair Equity Partners on its take private of premium-listed maternity wear company, Seraphine plc
• Greek E-commerce company VivaWallet on its series D fundraise from TenCent, Breyer Capital and the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development*
• The founders of a FinTech and E-commerce focused SPAC on its proposed IPO on Euronext Amsterdam*

Life Sciences

• Advising an affiliate of ZQ Capital on its Mandatory Takeover Offer of Allergy Therapeutics and related financing
• Stifel and WG Partners as joint bookrunners on AIM-quoted Scancell’s £12.7 million placing, subscription and open offer
• JP Morgan, Jefferies, Kempen and ABG SC as joint bookrunners on Nykode Therapeutics’s (an Oslo Bors listed company) US$45m private placement
• Stifel as placement agent on Renalytix’s (a dual AIM and NASDAQ listed company) US$20m private investment in public equity
• Jefferies and Peel Hunt as underwriters to PureTech Health on its £108 million IPO and premium listing on the London Stock Exchange*
• AIM-quoted Mereo BioPharma on its combination with Nasdaq-listed OncoMed Pharmaceuticals*
• Nasdaq-listed Centessa Pharmaceuticals on its first annual general meeting and on-going public company matters
• A European listed life sciences company on a proposed PIPE transaction
• A UK-based biotech company on its proposed IPO and premium listing on the London Stock Exchange

Real Estate

• Capital & Regional, a premium listed UK property REIT which owns retail and leisure properties throughout the UK, on its firm placing and open offer by way of a cash box placing
• A Greek real estate & luxury hotel developer on a proposed corporate finance transaction
• Industrials REIT (formerly known as Stenprop Limited) on its transfer from the specialist fund segment to the premium list of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and migration to a secondary listing on the Main Board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange*

Africa

• A leading global investment banking, securities, and investment management firm as joint global coordinator to Prosus, a spin-off of JSE-listed South African consumer internet group Naspers, on its IPO on Euronext Amsterdam becoming one of the largest tech companies listed in Europe**
• Greenhill as sponsor and an underwriting syndicate including J.P. Morgan, HSBC and Standard Bank to Johannesburg-headquartered platinum metals producer, Lonmin plc, on its multiple US$1.2 billion aggregate rights issues*
• Industrials REIT (formerly known as Stenprop Limited) on its transfer from the specialist fund segment to the premium list of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and migration to a secondary listing on the Main Board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange*
• Board of Directors of the UK subsidiary of an African listed financial institution on corporate governance matters*

Other

• Vedanta Resources on its US$5.9 billion reverse takeover of Cairn India and re-admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange*
• Wizz Air on its £309 million IPO and premium listing on the London Stock Exchange, Class 1 acquisition of 110 Airbus aircraft and general public company advisory matters*
• TI Fluid Systems on its £407 million IPO and premium listing on the London Stock Exchange*
• RPC Group on its £200 million rights issue and Class 1 acquisition of Promens Group, £90 million placing in connection with its takeover of British Polythene Industries plc and £552 million rights issue in connection with its acquisition of the Letica Group*
• Jefferies and Investec as sponsors and underwriters to Keller Group on its £200 million Class 1 acquisition of the piling division of North American Energy Partners and related £58.7 million cashbox placing*
• UBS, Barclays and Credit Suisse as bookrunners on the US$320 million placing by Nomad Foods*
• Jefferies as sponsor and underwriter to Severfield-Rowen (now known as Severfield) on its £47.9 million rights issue*

* Denotes experience prior to joining Goodwin.
** Denotes experience whilst on secondment.

As one of only a handful of black female partners at a top law firm in the UK, Ariel is passionate about contributing to a stronger pipeline of diverse lawyers in the legal profession and is therefore particularly active in the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion space both within the firm and externally as well as part of her broader ESG practice.

She currently serves as a:

• Committee Member of The Law Society’s Women Solicitors Network of England & Wales and previously served on the Law Society’s Council, its highest governing body
• Mentor for the Creating Pathways program of the UK’s Black Solicitors Network and Black Women in Asset Management leadership accelerator program and has previously served as a Mentor for the 30% Club’s mentoring program for women
• Member of the London Chapter of The Links, Inc – a US-based not-for-profit organization of prominent black females dedicated to service projects to support local Black communities
• Judge for scholarship competitions awarded by Lex:Lead, an organization focused on the professional development of lawyers in developing nations
• Member of the ACS Athens Global Alumni Advisory Board, her alma mater in Athens, Greece focused on enhancing student learning and development through leveraging the school’s global alumni community

• Recognized by Legal 500 UK for Equity Capital Markets and Chambers & Partners for Diversity & Inclusion
• Included in the UK’s 2023 Power in the City List, an annual list, sponsored by JP Morgan, celebrating the 25 most influential senior Black executives from the financial services, technology, and legal sectors across the UK
• Awarded Mentor of the Year at the 2023 Law.com’s Women Influence & Power in Law Awards in London
• Included in Cranfield University’s 2020 list of “Top 100 Women to Watch” for FTSE 100 board positions
• Headlined in the Next 100 Voices series by the Next 100 Years project which is the UK's first digital museum dedicated to women leaders in law

As a capital markets and corporate governance specialist, Ariel thought leadership is regularly published in leading national publications including The Chartered Governance Institute’s (formerly known as ICSA) Governance + Compliance magazine, City A.M., The ESG Investor and The Law Society’s publications.

Her recent publications include:

• Quoted, “Market Tracker Trend Report – Trends in UK Equity Capital Markets 2022,” LexisNexis Market Tracker, June 2023
• Co-Author, “Overhaul of the UK Listing Regime Continues – A Consideration of the FCA’s Most Recent Proposals Which are Most Relevant to Growth Companies and How They Compare with the Requirements of AIM and NASDAQ,” Goodwin Insights, May 2023
• Quoted, “New York tech firm Fadel sees AIM as ‘natural fit’,” LexisNexis Market Tracker, May 2023
• Co-Author, “Change to UK Insider Dealing Laws: A Step Towards Coherence,” Goodwin Insights, April 2023
• Co-Author, “The FCA’s Chief Executive Updates UK Market on Continued UK Listing Regime Reforms: A Consideration of Which Reforms Wil Most Impact Growth Companies,” Goodwin Insights, April 2023
• Quoted, “London IPO Drought is Worse Than in New York: ECM Watch,” Bloomberg Terminal, April 2023
• Quoted, UK Biotech Financing Report 2022, BioIndustry Association (BIA), February 2023
• Co-Author, “London’s Efforts to Facilitate Secondary Capital Raisings Continue: UK Pre-emption Group Issues Updated Statement of Principles,” Goodwin Insights, November 2022
• Co-Author, “Efforts to Elevate London as a Listing Venue of Choice for Growth Companies Continue – Publication of the UK Secondary Capital Raising Review,” Goodwin Insights, September 2022
• Quoted, “Stalled SPAC Market Paves Way for London Alternative: ECM Watch,” Bloomberg Terminal, July 2022
• Quoted, “Fading U.S. SPAC Appeal Keeps Europe Startups at Home: ECM Watch,” Bloomberg Terminal, April 2022
• Quoted, “Trends in UK Equity Capital Markets 2021-2022,” LexisNexis, April 2022
• Author, “Direct listings: Banks still have a key role to play,” The Banker, August 2021
• Author, “G: The Intersection between E and S,” ESG Investor, May 2021 
• Author, “The Right Fit”, Governance + Compliance Magazine, May 2021
• Co-Author, “SPACs and their recent popularity,” Private Equity News, April 2021 
• Co-Author, “Strengthening your corporate governance framework to weather the storm,” Lexology, March 2021

Her recent speaking engagements include:

• Panelist, “Capital Raising and IPOs For African Tech Ventures,” Africa Tech Summit, June 2023
• Panelist, “Divestment vs Active Engagement,” 2022 BWAM Conference, October 2022
• Panelist, “Stories from the Boardroom: GC’s Role at the Intersection of the Board & Stakeholders,” 2022 TechGC Euro Summit, October 2022
• Panelist, Biotech on Tap Conference, Munich, September 2022
• Panelist, “The Pathway to Partner,” Black Counsel Forum 2022, September 2022
• Speaker, “Next 100 Voices” premiere feature film, The Next 100 Years Project, July 2022
• Panelist, “Alternative Financing Options for US-based Growth Companies,” London Stock Exchange and Stifel, May 2022
• Panelist, “The Importance of Maintaining a Focus on ESG in a Rapidly-Changing International Environment,” NASDAQ, May 2022
• Moderator, “Successfully Managing & Driving Your Organization's ESG Initiatives,” Law.com’s Women, Influence & Power in Law Conference, May 2022
• Panelist, “Capital Markets Developments – Future Trends and Practical Implications,” PLI 21st Annual Institute on Securities Regulation in Europe, March 2022
• Panelist, LSX IPO Bootcamp, January 2022
• Panelist, “Opportunities and Risks for Institutions in Managing Social Activism and Stakeholder Engagement on ESG Issues,” SIFMA’s Compliance & Legal Annual Seminar, July 2021 
• Speaker, “Practical Lessons in Subsidiary Reporting: A Case Study,” The Governance Institute (formerly known as ICSA) Subsidiary Governance Summit, December 2021 
• Panelist, Shore Capital’s “ESG Seminar: ESG and the SME Board Agenda,” November 2021
• Panelist, “Capital Markets Developments – Practical Deal Implications in the COVID/Post-COVID Era,” PLI 20th Annual Institute on Securities Regulation in Europe, April 2021
• Speaker, Black Women in Asset Management: In Conversation With Ariel White-Tsimikalis, February 2021
• Moderator, The Law Society’s Fiona Woolf Lecture 2020, “The Challenges of Intersectionality in the Legal Profession,” November 2020