On January 19, 2024, Zepos & Yannopoulos announced that Enel’s sale of a 50% stake in Enel Green Power Hellas to Macquarie Asset Management (reported by CEE Legal Matters on August 18, 2023) had closed.

Bernitsas has advised Piraeus Financial Holdings on a liability management exercise concerning EUR 400 million in Tier 2 notes due June 26, 2029, and new EUR 500 million issuance of Tier 2 notes.

Papapolitis & Papapolitis has advised London & Regional Properties on the sale of Rhodes Bay Hotel & SPA and Elite Suites Rhodes Bay to the H Hotels Collection.

Drakopoulos has become a part of the South East Legal Alliance, thus expanding the network’s reach to Athens, Bucharest, and Nicosia.

Kyriakides Georgopoulos has advised BlueFuel on the acquisition of a biogas production unit with an installed capacity of 950 kilowatts – for which a 750-kilowatt expansion is planned – based in the Region of Central Macedonia.

Zepos & Yannopoulos has advised Greenvolt on its acquisition of a 200-megawatt solar project in Farsala, Greece, from the Archirodon Group.

In The Inside Track, General Counsels across CEE share the nuances of their roles, challenges, and strategies for success. Given the importance of relationships between in-house legal departments and law firms, this time we asked GCs: What is the most common reason for which you cease working with a specific law firm and what would you suggest firms definitely do to ensure they do not make the same mistake?

In The Corner Office, we ask Managing Partners at law firms across Central and Eastern Europe about their backgrounds, strategies, and responsibilities. With 2023 marching to an end, we looked ahead and asked about strategies for next year: As the budgeting period is around the corner, compared to 2023, what are the main budgeting lines you expect to increase for 2024 and why?

Fortsakis Diakopoulos & Associates has advised the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund on the sale of a 67% stake in the Heraklion Port Authority to a consortium consisting of Grimaldi Euromed and Minoan Lines.

AKL has advised Alpha Bank on a EUR 350 million refinancing deal with Astir Palace Vouliagmenis.

Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Inter Cars on the extension, increase, and reorganization of its senior facilities in the aggregate amount of approximately PLN 2.54 billion (USD 642 million). Kinstellar, Magnusson, Kelemenis, and Glimstedt reportedly advised on the matter as well.

On November 21, 2023, corporate/M&A and private equity experts from Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkiye, and Ukraine sat down for a virtual round table moderated by CEE Legal Matters Managing Editor Radu Cotarcea to discuss the key developments in the field over the past decade.

Drakopoulos Managing Partner Panagiotis Drakopoulos talks about the evolution of the practice and their role as legal advisors in Greece over the last 10 years.

Bernitsas Law has advised the Piraeus Bank on its EUR 500 million issuance of Senior Preferred Notes due December 2029 and their listing on the Euro MTF Market of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

In our Looking In series, we talk to Partners from outside CEE who are keeping an eye on the region (and often pop up in our deal lists) to learn how they perceive CEE markets and their evolution. For this issue, we sat down with Reed Smith Partner Kevin-Paul Deveau.

Bernitsas has advised Eurobank on the EUR 500 million issuance and offering of its fixed-rate callable senior preferred instrument due November 2029 to international and domestic institutional investors, as well as their listing on the Euro MTF Market of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

Bernitsas Law has advised Helleniq Energy Holdings on the refinancing of a EUR 400 million common bond loan issued by its Hellenic Petroleum subsidiary.

Bernitsas Law has advised the European Investment Bank on its financing for the extension of the Northern Cyclades interconnection, a project conducted by Greece's Independent Power Transmission Operator.