A deal on which law firm Stephenson Harwood advised – the partnership of Hipgnosis Song Management (HSM) and Blackstone – has been awarded the 2022 IFLR Europe Awards' private equity deal of the year.

The awards, which focus exclusively on legal innovation in cross-border transactions which closed in 2021, recognise cutting-edge legal advice.

The deal enabled the delivery of US$1 billion to acquire music rights and manage catalogues. As part of the partnership, Blackstone took an ownership stake in HSM, and supported the expansion of its infrastructure and business functions, including the development of new song management expertise, data science capabilities and technology solutions.

The Stephenson Harwood team advising HSM was led by corporate partner Alex Haynes, with assistance from corporate partner Nick Horton, intellectual property partner Alexandra Pygall and tax partner John Meehan.