Corporate finance team advises Dutch-based customs group on third UK acquisition this year

The corporate finance team in the Midlands office of national audit, tax, advisory and risk firm Crowe has advised on a third deal this year for Customs Support Group (CSG), the European digital customs broker.

CSG has acquired Britannia Bureau which is based in Langdon, Essex, and has offices in Liverpool and London.

Britannia Bureau was founded in 2009 and is a fully digitalised and independent customs bureau with more than 80 employees.

The deal follows on from CSG’s acquisitions of two other UK businesses in May – Osborn Customs Services, the Rochester-based customs clearance experts, and the Dover export agents KSI Portlink, which were also advised by Crowe.

Netherlands-based CSG first expanded its operations into the UK with the acquisition of UK Customs Solutions back in October 2021.

Crowe’s corporate finance team was led by partner Andy Kay and director Chasz Coulsting, supported by colleagues Phoebe Turner and Nick Martin. They provided financial due diligence and transaction support services.

Kay said: “This acquisition enables Customs Support to strengthen its presence across the UK and to make customs easy for global trade from and to the UK.”

Crowe acts for CSG internationally and colleagues in France, Italy and Ireland have also been advising on EU deals.

Kay added: “The Midlands corporate finance team has been instrumental in assisting CSG with the recent acquisition of three UK businesses this year. The skills and expertise of CSG are vital in helping to keep trade flowing smoothly in both directions for both EU and non-EU businesses.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, CSG is Europe’s leading independent, digital and neutral provider of customs services employing more than 1,500 dedicated customs staff serving over 15,000 customers annually. The company operates in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Poland, France, United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Spain and Luxembourg.

Sebastian Ootjers, mergers & acquisitions director of CSG, said: “Once again we received excellent support from Crowe’s Corporate Finance Team, enabling us to complete another acquisition in the UK satisfactorily.

“Andy, Chasz and their colleagues are a key partner to us as we continue to build our presence in the UK.”

Adam McGiveron and Emma Bryant from Pennington Manches Cooper provided legal support to CSG.