Who Advised on the Oracle’s $9.3 Billion NetSuite Acquisition?

Oracle Corporation has entered into an agreement to buy cloud computing company NetSuite for $9.3 billion, or $109 per share, according to a statement from Oracle on Thursday.

Weil, Gotshal & Manges is advising Oracle on the deal, according to data from Bloomberg Law: Corporate Transactions. Sullivan & Cromwell lawyers told Big Law Business they’re representing Moelis & Company, Oracle’s financial advisor.

A Weil representative told Big Law Business the firm’s team is led by Keith Flaum and James Griffin, partners in the Silicon Valley and Dallas offices, respectively.

Weil partners Helyn Goldstein advised Oracle on tax aspects, and partner Amy Rubin advised on executive compensation.

According to the Weil website, Flaum and Griffin have helped on a number of acquisitions for Oracle in the past, including the company’s $5.3 billion purchase in 2014 of MICROS Systems.

Flaum also worked on Facebook’s $16 billion acquisition of WhatsApp in 2014, and Griffin represented Gores Holdings in its recent acquisition of Hostess Brands, a transaction which was seen as shoring up Hostess’ future, to the delight of Twinkie fans everywhere.

Wilson Sonsini is advising NetSuite in the transaction, according to a firm representative. The team working on the deal, made up of 30 lawyers, is led by firm chairman, Larry Sonsini and partners Martin Korman and Bradley Finklestein.

Firm partners Scott Sher and Jamillia Ferris led the deal’s antitrust team. Kira Kimhi advised on IP, and Ivan Humphries provided counsel on tax issues.

NetSuite did not return requests for comment.

Statements on Thursday from company executives on both sides of the Oracle-NetSuite tie-up cited synergy between Oracle’s “global scale and reach,” and a cloud computing system which NetSuite has been developing for the last 18 years, according to Oracle’s press release.

The deal, seen as an effort by Oracle to compete with other cloud providers like Salesforce.com Inc., Microsoft Corp. and SAP SE, is reportedly the largest for the company since it’s 2005 purchase of PeopleSoft for $10.3 billion.

The two companies already had close ties: Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison was a founding investor in NetSuite when the company launched in 1998.

The transaction’s $109 share price was 18 percent higher than NetSuite’s closing price on Wednesday. The deal is expected to close before the end of the year.