Daria Vessa

Daria advises strategic and financial buyers and sellers on public and private mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, minority investments and divestitures. Her clients range from early-stage startups to global public companies across the technology, life sciences, consumer, financial services and industrial sectors. Daria brings a practical, execution-focused approach to complex transactions and helps clients navigate their most significant strategic matters from signing through closing.

Daria’s representative transactions include advising:

• Alphabet on its:
  • $5.4 billion acquisition of Mandiant*
  • Pending joint venture with Stonepeak Partners and Astound Broadband to combine Google Fiber with Astound*
• Alphabet and Isomorphic on Isomorphic’s $600 million first external investment round led by Thrive Capital with participation from GV and a follow-on investment from Alphabet*
• Celsius on a series of strategic transactions with PepsiCo, including moving its Alani Nu brand into PepsiCo’s distribution system in the US and Canada, preferred stock issuance to PepsiCo and acquisition of the Rockstar Energy brand in the US and Canada from PepsiCo*
• Coupa on its $8 billion sale to Thoma Bravo*
• Zeus on its $3.4 billion sale to EQT*
• Saint-Gobain on its $2.3 billion acquisition of GCP Applied Technologies*
• Novartis on its up to $1 billion acquisition of DTx Pharma*
• Kite on its up to $1.3 billion acquisition of Tmunity Therapeutics*
• Penske Automotive Group on its $519 million acquisition of Penske Motor Group, including automotive dealerships in California and Texas*
• General Atlantic on its Series B investment in Reliance Health*
• London Stock Exchange Group on its acquisition of MayStreet*
• Sonoco on its $330 million acquisition of the remaining equity interests in RTS Packaging and one Tennessee paper mill from its joint venture partner WestRock*
• Sandvik on its acquisition of GWS Tool Group from L Squared Capital Partners*
• Goldman Sachs as financial advisor to the special committees of the boards of directors of:
  • Select Medical in Select Medical’s $3.9 billion management buyout*
  • Myovant in Sumitomo Pharma’s $1.7 billion acquisition of the remaining equity interests in Myovant that it did not already own*

* Representation handled prior to joining Cooley

Before joining Cooley, Daria practiced in the M&A group of a leading international law firm in New York.