Lincoln International Opens Office in Amsterdam: Eric Wijs, Managing Director and Head of the Benelux, to Lead Office

AMSTERDAM, 1 MARCH 2010 – Lincoln International announced the opening of its Amsterdam office, marking another important step in its global expansion. Eric Wijs has been appointed to lead the new office.

Lincoln International has established a strong presence in the key global economies, with offices in Chicago, Frankfurt, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, New York, Paris, Tokyo, Vienna and now Amsterdam.

The Benelux represents an important economic region in Europe with strong connections to North America, Germany, France, the UK and Asia — key markets where Lincoln International is already present. The firm’s local presence will help to expand and strengthen its relationships with current and prospective clients in this important market.

Lincoln International will offer a unique advisory service to Benelux clients. The Amsterdam office of Lincoln International will focus on advising on mid-market transactions in combination with very active M&A practices in North America, Europe and Asia. Lincoln International is the only integrated M&A advisory firm with global resources and industry expertise that can provide this service to middle market clients. Because a significant proportion of M&A transactions in the Benelux are mid-market in size, Lincoln International will be providing a level of service to companies, investors and government entities in the region which has only been available to date for larger companies.

The Amsterdam office will be led by Eric Wijs, who recently joined the firm as Managing Director and Head of the Benelux. Eric will work closely with Michael Bottenheim, a Dutch national who is an Advisory Director with Lincoln International based in London. Prior to joining Lincoln International, Eric was a Managing Director with Lazard where he served for 11 years in its financial advisory practice in Amsterdam, Paris and London. Eric established Lazard’s Amsterdam office in 2004 and advised clients in the Benelux, France, UK and Germany on M&A transactions, IPO’s, capital raisings and restructuring. Before joining Lazard Eric worked with Baring Brothers in London and ING Bank in Amsterdam. He graduated in business administration from the Erasmus University Rotterdam and holds a CEMS Master. At Lazard Eric worked closely with Michael Bottenheim who was a Managing Director in London from 1985 until 2000, advising clients in the Benelux, Germany, Scandinavia, Switzerland, Austria and U.S. Prior to Lazard, Michael spent 9 years with Citicorp, in London and Zurich. He started his career with Pierson, Heldring & Pierson in Amsterdam in 1972.

“As we continue to expand, the Benelux market is important because it has many very good companies in a wide range of industries that are active in cross-border acquisitions or attractive to cross-border buyers,” said Jim Lawson, Chairman of Lincoln International. “Having an Amsterdam office with dedicated local resources allows Lincoln International to deepen our ties with Belgian and Dutch public and private companies, private equity firms and public sector entities. Also, we think the combination of Eric and Michael is an advantage to our clients, as it reunites a successful Lazard team experienced in Benelux transactions, and Michael brings the experience of having been a key team member in the successful start-up of the Lincoln International London office.”

“Lincoln International’s fully-integrated global platform is unique to the mid-market and exactly what Benelux firms need as they increase focus on cross-border M&A business development,” said Eric Wijs. “Lincoln not only has impressive global reach, but deep expertise within specific industry sectors that is unmatched by any other mid-market M&A advisor.”

About Lincoln International

Lincoln International specializes in merger and acquisition advisory services, private capital raising, U.K. pensions advisory services and providing restructuring advice, fairness opinions and valuations for leading organizations involved in mid-market transactions. With offices in Amsterdam, Chicago, Frankfurt, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, New York, Paris, Tokyo and Vienna, and strategic partnerships with China Everbright in China and ICICI Securities, Inc. in India, Lincoln International has strong local knowledge and contacts in the key global economies. The organization provides clients with senior-level attention, in-depth industry expertise, and integrated resources. By being focused and independent, Lincoln International serves its clients without conflicts of interest. More information about Lincoln International can be obtained at www.lincolninternational.com.