Anne Lise E. Gryte is a partner and head of Wiersholm’s Corporate Department. She focuses on mergers and acquisitions, capital markets transactions, corporate governance and corporate and securities law matters. She has represented numerous public and private entities and investment banks in a variety of industries and transactions, including IPOs, domestic and cross-border transactions, investments, spin-offs, private equity transactions, public takeovers and capital markets transactions.
Anne Lise has been recognised as a Rising Star partner within capital markets in Norway by Chambers Europe (Band 3), Legal 500 and IFLR.
Anne Lise is member of the International Bar Association’s (IBA) Securities law and Capital Markets Committee, and vice chair of the Equity Capital Markets Sub Committee. She is member of the board of Awilhelmsen Capital AS, head of the Nomination Committees of Mowi ASA and Axactor ASA, and is a member of the Nomination Committees of Klaveness Combination Carriers ASA and Edda Wind ASA. She is one of the founders of the pro bono initiative Styrelisten (www.styrelisten.com)
Awards, Work experience, Memberships and Education
- Top 10, Advokatundersøkelsen, Finansavisen, Share issues and IPOs, 2024
- Rising Star partner, IFLR1000, Capital markets: Equity, 2024
- Next Generation Partner, Legal 500, Capital Markets, 2024
- Band 2, Chambers Europe, Capital Markets: Equity, 2024
- Band 2, Capital Markets: Equity, 2024
- Band 3, Chambers Global, Capital Markets: Equity, 2023
- Band 3, Chambers Europe, Capital Markets: Equity, 2023
- Rising star partner, IFLR1000, Capital markets: Equity, 2023
- 2023
- Promising talents, Advokatundersøkelsen, Finansavisen, Issuance and IPOs, 2023
- Next Generation Partners, Legal 500, Capital Markets, 2022
- Up and Coming, Chambers Global, Capital Markets: Equity – Norway, 2022
- Rising stars, Legal 500, Capital Markets, 2021
- Associates to watch, Chambers Europe, Capital Markets: Equity – Norway, 2021
- Rising stars, Legal 500, Capital Markets, 2020
- Associates to watch, Chambers Europe, Capital Markets: Norway, 2020
- Partner, Wiersholm, 2021
- Managing Associate, Wiersholm, 2018
- Managing Associate, CLP, 2017
- Managing Associate, Thommessen (Oslo), 2015
- Senior Associate , Thommessen (London), 2011
- Associate/Senior Associate, Thommessen (Oslo), 2009
- Associate, Haavind, 2006
- 2024
- 2024
- Officer IBA Capital Markets Committee, 2023
- Chairman of the nomination committee, Axactor ASA, 2020
- Chairman of the nomination committee, Mowi ASA, 2020
- Election committee member, Klaveness Combination Carriers, 2019
- Chairman and co-founder, Styrelisten AS, 2017
- Cand. Jur., University of Bergen, 2006
- Postgraduate subjects, K.U. Leuven, 2006
- Project management, Metier Academy/SKEMA Business School, 2015
Selected projects
Carve-out of Yara Clean Ammonia AS from Yara International ASA
We advised Schibsted in the NOK 140 billion voluntary offer for Adevinta, announced by Permira and Blackstone on 21 November 2023. If completed, the deal is said to be the largest ever PE-backed take-private transaction in the Nordics (measured by value). Our team is thrilled to have participated in this landmark deal, where Schibsted will sell shares for NOK 24 billion in cash and will reinvest its remaining part in the offer group for a 13.6% shareholding in the newly privatized company.
Assistance to Schibsted ASA with the acquisition of 10.1% of Viaplay
Wilh. Wilhelmsen offered to acquire all the outstanding shares in its OSE listed subsidiary Treasure ASA. The transaction was outside the offer rules due to Wilh. Wilhelmsen's 78% ownership interest in Treasure
Wiersholm assisted ABG Sundal Collier and DNB Markets, the Managers, in connection with the private placement and listing of Höegh Autoliners on Euronext Growth. The market cap was NOK 3.97 billion post-money and they raised NOK 1.2 billion. Höegh Autoliners is one of the leading global providers of deep-sea RoRo transportation services, operating a fleet of around 40 Pure Car and Truck Carriers (“PCTC”) sailing in global trade systems.
Wiersholm assisted Hemen Holding Limited in their offer to acquire Avance Gas Holding Ltd.
Wiersholm advised the Managers on the IPO of Autostore on Oslo Stock Exchange. Autostore's market cap was NOK 103.5 billion post-money and raised a total of NOK 2.7 billion. AutoStore is an innovative robotic and software technology company, and a pioneer of cubic storage automation. The group operates in the rapidly growing warehouse automation industry, and in the even faster growing cube storage segment. Autostore sold more than 87 million treasury shares, and the owners selling the most shares are Thomas Lee Partners and EQT.
Wiersholm advised Golden Ocean Group Limited on its successful private placement of USD 338 million (~NOK 2,873 million) on 17 February 2021. Wiersholm was issuer counsel and advised the clients on all aspects of the transactions. The size of the private placement required a listing prospectus, and the board as resolved to carry out a repair offering of NOK 143,6 million expected to be completed in April 2021
Wiersholm advised Arctic Fish Holding AS on its successful NOK 600 million private placement on 15 February 2021, and subsequent listing on Euronext Growth Oslo on 19 February 2021. Wiersholm was issuer counsel and advised the clients on all aspects of the transactions. The transaction also involved a restructuring of the corporate structure to establish a Norwegian listing entity.
Wiersholm advised the joint global coordinators and joint global bookrunnes in connection with the initial public offering of Edda Wind on Oslo Stock Exchange. Edda Wind's market capwas NOK 1.015 billion post-money and raised a total of NOK 875 million. Edda Wind is a leading pure play offshore wind service company. The Company develops, builds, owns and operates purpose-built Service Operation Vessels (“SOV”) and Commissioning Service Operation Vessels (“CSOV”) for offshore wind farms worldwide. Edda Wind is creating the next generation of offshore wind service vessels and works closely with partners to develop new technologies to reduce emissions without compromising operational capabilities or cost competitiveness. The existing shareholders, Østensjø and Wilhelmsen, and managers, was given an over-allotment option and will retain an ownership of at least 25%. The Offering attracted very strong interest and was substantially oversubscribed.
Assisted Elopak ASA and its majority owner Ferd AS on its NOK 3 billion initial public offering on the Oslo Stock Exchange main list
Assistance to the Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries in connection with two complex state aid notifications concerning an aid guarantee scheme for the airline industry to mitigate shortness of liquidity resulting from the Covid-19 outbreak. The case was highly complex as the Temporary Framework set out by the European Commission was inapplicable. The state aid was given in the form of guarantee schemes and had an estimated budget of 6 billion NOK. The support scheme has played a vital role in securing liquidity for large and small airlines in Norway throughout the corona-outbreak, e.g. the survival of major Norwegian airline Norwegian ASA. On 21 March 2020, the Norwegian Parliament agreed on support measures through guarantee schemes for the airline industry to remedy the severe disturbances resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak. The aid was notified to the EFTA Surveillance Authority on 30 March and approved by the Authority the same day. As the effects of COVID-19 turned out to be more severe and long-lasting than expected, several airlines could not fulfill some of the criteria in the original aid scheme. Thus, Wiersholm assisted in the renewal and amendment of the scheme so that the scheme was suitable to support both SMEs and large undertakings for a longer time period, with alternative criteria to those included in the Commission's Temporary Framework for state aid support in wake of the Covid-19 outbreak,. The support measures consisted of the Norwegian Government providing public guarantees on new loans to airlines operating under a Norwegian Air Operating Certificate. The guarantees covered liquidity and working capital loan facilities. The aid has received both national and international media coverage.
Wiersholm assisted the Norwegian government in establishing a state guaranteed individual loan programme to support the airlines in the COVID-19 downturn. Due to Covid-19 outbreak, a liquidity shortage arose in the aviation industry. Wiersholm assisted in connection with two complex state aid notifications regarding a guarantee scheme for the aviation industry to alleviate this liquidity shortage. The state aid was provided in the form of guarantee schemes and had an estimated budget of NOK 6 billion. The case was very complex as the European Commission's temporary framework could not be applied.
Adevinta in the collapse of its A- and B-share classes to a single share class and subsequent rights issue
Assistance to Schibsted ASA and its subsidiary Adevinta in connection with the carve-out, IPO and listing of Adevinta on Oslo Stock Exchange in April 2019. This was the largest IPO by market cap on Oslo Stock Exchange since 2006 and the fourth largest of all time.