In The Spotlight
Lawyering in Greece presents both significant opportunities and challenges, shaped by the country’s rich legal heritage, its evolving economic landscape, and its uniquely strategic geographical position.
Ellex has advised Estonian-based Blackwall on its EUR 45 million series B funding round led by Dawn Capital with participation from existing investors.
Schoenherr has advised Dealavo on its sale to JTL-Software. DWF advised JTL-Software.
Miskovic & Miskovic has advised Erste & Steiermaerkische Bank, Hrvatska Postanska Banka, OTP Banka, Privredna Banka Zagreb, Raiffeisenbank Austria, and Zagrebacka Banka on Republic of Croatia’s state EUR 1.75 billion bonds issuance.
Rymarz Zdort Maruta has advised Innova Capital on the acquisition of a majority stake in ProService Finteco and a 50% stake in Investment Funds Depositary Services. Linklaters ProService Finteco.
Cobalt has successfully represented Swedish truck manufacturer Volvo Truck Corporation in a dispute initiated by Balta against Latvian truck conversion specialist Unitruck.
Gide has advised BNP Paribas Bank Polska on granting a new facility to finance three retail projects from the portfolios of Newgate Investment and Torwell Investment including Galeria Sieradzka, Wysockiego Retail Park in Bialystok, and Certe Convenience Shopping Center in Gdansk-Suchanino.
Paksoy, working with Linklaters, has advised Actera Group and Esas Holding on their exit from Mars Spor Kulubu to Benefit Systems. Herguner Bilgen Ucer and Moskwa Jarmul Haladyj advised Benefit Systems.
Rymarz Zdort Maruta has advised Innova Capital on the acquisition of Punkta Group from Pollen Street Capital. Clifford Chance advised Punkta on the deal.
Integrites has advised Eurocape’s subsidiary on the development of a 100-megawatt wind park in the Lviv region, Ukraine, involving an investment of EUR 200 million.
Norton Rose Fulbright has advised BBI Development on the issuance and allocation of 44,740,000 new bonds with a total nominal value of PLN 44.74 million.
CMS has advised Green Energy Market on a 10-year market coordinator license from the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission of Bulgaria.
Schoenherr has advised Enterprise Investors on a debt financing transaction aimed at supporting the growth of Expobud Domy. Greenberg Traurig advised mBank on the financing of the transaction.
Burgundy Capital Management has appointed Cezary Cienkowski as its new General Counsel.
Former T-Mobile Czech Republic and Slovak Telekom General Counsel and Head of Legal, Regulatory & Compliance Affairs Vladimira Chlandova was appointed as the Vodafone Czech Republic's new Vice President for Legal Affairs, Risk Management, and Corporate Security.
Partner in Pet Food Legal Counsel Eszter Barta has become the firm's new Group Legal Director.
BRD - Groupe Societe Generale in-house Lawyer Vlad Giurgiu has joined LegalZen as its Head of Legal.
Former Oglinda & Partners lawyers Eugen Sarbu, Mihai Ionescu-Balea, and Tasiana Timofticiuc have established Sarbu Partners in Bucharest.
Rymarz Zdort Maruta has promoted Lukasz Lech, Adam Puchalski, Krzysztof Rembierz, Maria Szczepanska, and Piotr Zawacki to Partner.
Romanian lawyer Adina Jach was promoted to Head of Legal and Compliance at Reverse Logistics Group in Germany.
Karanovic & Partners has promoted Milica Filipovic, Marko Culafic, and Sava Draca to Partner.
Partner Igor Kalitventsev has left KPD Consulting.
TGS Baltic has promoted Triinu Jarviste to Partner and Erki Fels to Associate Partner at the firm's Estonia office.
Asters has promoted Yuna Potomkina to Partner.
Stratulat Albulescu has elevated Manuela Iurascu and Raluca Gabor to Partner as part of the firm's latest promotion round.
Financing transactions often involve lenders taking security over the assets of a borrower’s group of companies. The typical security package in Bulgaria includes security over the borrower’s and other relevant group companies’ shares and the receivables deriving from such shares.
Did you know that corporate bonds in Moldova are unlocking a financial transformation, raising millions for businesses, and opening doors for investors? For years, Moldova’s capital markets have been characterized by limited activity, primarily consisting of equity securities and government bonds. The emergence of corporate bonds marks a significant turning point, signaling a transformation in the country`s financial ecosystem. Recent regulatory reforms and successful stories of bond issuances are redefining the market, creating new investment opportunities for market participants.
Cash pooling arrangements allowing companies to optimize their cash and better manage liquidity have been present as part of the financial product offered by banks to their clients for some time now.
The investment volume curve concerning Serbia’s capital markets and trading on the Belgrade Stock Exchange is on a downward trajectory as of the end of the second round of mass privatizations and the start of the 2008-2009 economic crisis.
The inherent volatility of the financial market offers many opportunities but also poses significant risks. Following the 2007-2008 financial crisis, legislators in the European Union struggled to contain the non-performing exposure (NPE) cycle through legislative action.
Slovenia’s financing landscape over the past couple of years has been characterized by the expansion and consolidation efforts of Hungary’s OTP banking group, resulting in the market being headed by two comparably large institutional players: NLB and OTP. In fact, consolidation in the banking sector could have easily been the talk of the year had it not been for the increased financing costs fueled by relatively high interest rates combined with volatile energy prices that have been causing headaches for the economy on all levels.
Aiming to protect consumers from potentially excessive interest rates applied by Romanian non-bank financial institutions (NBFI) and to ensure increased transparency in loan claim assignments, in November 2024, Romania enacted Law 243/2024 on consumer protection regarding the total cost of credit and assignment of claims (Law 243/2024).
Private equity funds have become an increasingly popular investment vehicle in Hungary since the late 2010s, currently, the register of the National Bank of Hungary shows more than 165 private equity funds registered in Hungary. Although the availability of specific statistics is limited, based on the partial data, it can be estimated that the total assets of Hungarian private equity funds are roughly around HUF 3 trillion, i.e., close to 4% of the nominal GDP of Hungary.
Over the recent years, Greece has taken significant steps in stabilizing its banking sector, owing to several regulatory reforms and a strengthened capital position of its banks. Moody’s revision of the country’s outlook to “positive” in September 2024 is mainly attributed to the recovery of the Greek banking sector and the country’s strong economic performance.
The DORA regulation (Regulation (EU) 2022/2554 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2022 on digital operational resilience for the financial sector) is an essential piece of European legislation aiming to bolster cybersecurity within the EU.
Turkiye has long had one of the lowest non-performing loan (NPL) rates in Europe, but recent years have seen some ups and downs. Between 2017 and 2020, the rate fluctuated between 3.25% and 3.46%. During the pandemic, the rate dropped significantly as borrowers benefited from extended loan payment schedules. Thereafter, the rate rose briefly before falling below the European Union average of 2.27% in 2023. Since the beginning of 2024, however, rising interest rates have pushed the NPL rate back up, to 1.71%. Experts expect the rate to rise to 2.5% by the end of the year, above the EU average and a challenge for borrowers and lenders.
The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) is a central component of the EU’s Digital Finance Package. The aim is to enhance information and communications technology (ICT) security and digital operational resilience in the financial sector. Financial institutions and ICT service providers have until January 17, 2025, to fully implement the requirements.
This makes bpv Huegel’s tax practice top-ranked in Chambers Europe. This confirms the leading position of bpv Huegel in tax law advice.
bpv Huegel advises EAVISTA on the acquisition of the majority stake in card complete Service Bank AG
EAVISTA is acquiring 75.1% of the shares in card complete Service Bank AG from UniCredit Bank Austria and Raiffeisen Bank International.
We are delighted to announce that PRK Partners has been shortlisted with other three international law firms operating on the Czech legal market as finalists for the Czech Republic Law Firm of the Year 2025 in the 26th annual IFLR Europe Awards.
The Antimonopoly Office of the Slovak Republic (PMU) imposed a fine of EUR 675,200 on United Classifieds s.r.o. for a serious breach of competition rules, namely for abuse of a dominant position on the online real estate advertising market.
RTPR announces the promotion of Bogdan Cordos to Partner. He joins the team of 8 partners consisting of Costin Taracila, Victor Padurari, Alexandru Retevoescu, Mihai Ristici, Valentin Berea, Roxana Ionescu, Alina Stavaru and Cosmin Tilea.
The bpv Huegel team led by Elke Napokoj advised the founder and the shareholders of EVK DI Kerschhaggl GmbH (“EVK”).
A transaction team of bpv Huegel advised RWA Raiffeisen Ware Austria Handel und Vermögensverwaltung eGen (RWA eGen) on the acquisition of shares in RWA Raiffeisen Ware Austria Aktiengesellschaft (RWA AG) from BayWa Aktiengesellschaft (BayWa AG).
RADULESCU & MUSOI provided comprehensive legal support for the successful completion of the transaction through which DigiRay, whose majority shareholder is the investment fund Black Sea Fund, acquired the three Maraffka clinics in Ploiești.
Schoenherr has won Best Law Firm of the Year at the 2024 CIJ Awards Hungary gala in Budapest. In the last three years, Schoenherr's real estate practice has played a prominent role in landmark deals in Hungary.
IMMOFINANZ takes further step to optimise group structure. IMMOFINANZ Group holds 100% of the shares in S IMMO following completion of the squeeze-out.
RTPR announces the successful closing of a new M&A transaction in the energy industry, the sale of the renewable energy portfolio of Evryo Group, owned by funds managed by Macquarie Asset Management, to PPC Group.
Nechala and partners advised the seller, Mr. Heimo Wallisch, on the successful sale of EASYS s. r. o.
Our Latest Issue
Despite the ongoing war, Ukraine’s legal and investment landscape continues to evolve, with shifting trends in M&A, infrastructure, and technology-driven sectors, according to EY Law Partner Bogdan Malniev who also reports renewed interest in logistics, defense technology, and corporate governance reforms.
Nestle South Eastern Europe Head of Legal & Compliance Natalia Lysa discusses her career, the rewards of working closely with business operations, and the challenges of navigating legal complexities during Ukraine’s war.
Nestle South Eastern Europe Head of Legal & Compliance Natalia Lysa discusses her career, the rewards of working closely with business operations, and the challenges of navigating legal complexities during Ukraine’s war.
On November 23, CEE Legal Matters reported that Cobalt had advised BaltCap Latvia Venture Capital Fund and funds managed by Imprimatur Capital, together with other shareholders, on the sale of Blue Bridge Technologies to Everfield. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Henning Schreiber, Head of Acquisitions at Everfield, to learn more about the acquisition.
