Category: Greece

Zepos & Yannopoulos has advised Bain Capital Credit on its acquisition of a non-performing corporate loan portfolio from the National Bank of Greece.

According to Zepos & Yannopoulos, the portfolio consists of approximately 2,800 secured loans with a total outstanding principal amount of around EUR 1.6 billion (around EUR 0.6 billion of allocated collateral value). “Following the signing of the transaction in June 2020,” Zepos & Yannopoulos reported, “Project Icon has successfully closed and the loan portfolio has been transferred to a vehicle of Bain Capital.” Servicing of the portfolio was assigned by Bain Capital to doValue Greece.

The Zepos & Yannopoulos team included Partner Christina Papanikolopoulou, Senior Associate Paris Tzoumas, and Associates Niki Ignatidi and Pinelopi Klara, among others. The firm could not disclose any further information about the deal.

Zepos & Yannopoulos has advised Alpha Bank on Project Galaxy, which it describes as “the second largest NPE securitization in Europe.”

As part of the deal, Alpha Bank sold Davidson Kempner Capital Management 80% of its loan servicing subsidiary Cepal Holdings Single Member S.A. 51% of the mezzanine and junior notes of each of the four securitizations comprising Project Galaxy., including a EUR 10.8 billion sale of a non-performing loan portfolio and 80% of the shares in subsidiary Cepal Holdings Single Member.

Davidson Kempner is an institutional alternative investment management firm that was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in New York. The company currently holds over USD 34 billion in assets under management.

The Zepos & Yannopoulos team included Partners Christina Papanikolopoulou, Kely Pesketzi, Elena Papachristou, Maria Zoupa, Daphne Cozonis, and Alex Karopoulos, Director Georgia Voutsa, and Associates Niki Ignatidi and Athina Palli.

The firm could not disclose any further information about the deal.

Stamatis Drakakakis, Partner and Head of Antitrust & Competition practice at Zepos & Yannopoulos, has been appointed to the firm’s Executive Committee.

The committee, which now consists of six members, also includes Managing Partner Dimitris Zepos, Co-Managing Partner Yerassimos Yannopoulos, and Partners Stefanos Charaktiniotis, Elina Filippou, and Maria Zoupa.

Drakakakis completed his traineeship at the firm in the late ‘90s. From 2002 to 2008 he was with Howrey and then Arnold & Porter. He moved to D.N Tzouganatos & Partners in 2009, where he spent almost four years. He then joined Koutalidis Law in 2012 and stayed there until he rejoined Zepos & Yannopoulos at the end of 2019 (as reported by CEE Legal Matters on December 30, 2019).

Zepos & Yannopoulos has advised BrookLane Capital on acquisition financing and a long term financing arrangement with Alpha Bank as part of a broader leveraged buyout deal of Alpha subsidiary Alpha Investment Properties II. AKL and the Lambadarios Law Firm advised the Alpha Bank.

According to Zepos, the transaction led to BrookLane Capital acquiring 100% of the shares in real estate company Alpha Investment Properties II. The firm reported that AIP 2’s real estate portfolio consists of a shopping mall in Paleo Faliro and two office buildings in Chalandri, Greece.

BrookLane Capital is Nicosia-based private equity fund which primarily invests in the Greek and Cypriot markets.

Zepos & Yannopoulos’s team included Partners Sonia Melegou and Athina Skolarikou, Senior Associates Paris Tzoumas and Mary Georgiou, and Associates Dionysis Maximos Poukamisas, Gina Dimitropoulou, and Anastasia Veneti-Pagoni.

The AKL team included Partner George Zohios and Associate George Athanassiou.

Lambadarios Law Firm’s team consisted of Managing Partner Constantinos Lambadarios and Partners Prokopis Dimitriadis and Melina Katsimi.

Zepos & Yannopoulos has advised the Intrum Group on Project Iris — the acquisition made as part of joint venture with the EBRD of an unsecured non-performing exposure portfolio originated by Piraeus Bank, consisting of approximately 53,000 loans with total legal claims of about EUR 1.7 billion and a gross book value of EUR 0.7 billion. 

The portfolio was acquired through a special purpose company, Iris Hellas Investments Designated Activity Company, while management of the portfolio was assigned to Intrum Hellas.

According to the EBRD, “as of September 2020, NPEs in Greece stood at EUR 63.5 billion, representing 35.3 per cent of total exposures. The project will further support the stability of the Greek banking sector, helping to reduce the current number of total exposures by Greek banks, in line with the reduction targets agreed with the supervisory authorities.”

Zepos & Yannopoulos’s team was led by Partner Kely Pesketzi and Senior Associate Mary Nigritinou and included Associates Vivian Efthymiou and Pinelopi Klara.

Zepos & Yannopoulos did not reply to our inquiry on the matter.

The Alexiou-Kosmopoulos Law Firm has changed its name to AKL and changed its leadership, with Alexandros Kosmopoulos and Helen Alexiou having been elected joint Managing Partners.

According to AKL, “this change [of] name represents an evolution of our identity to take us into the 21st Century and beyond.” According to the firm, “in 2020 we all experienced difficulties, personally and professionally, due to the Covid-19 global pandemic. Our colleagues, our clients, our country, and indeed the whole world have been affected and it has been necessary to adapt to new and often unforeseen challenges, challenges that will continue in 2021 and beyond. Introducing our new brand at this time represents our belief and optimism in the future and recognizes that as a business we must continue to adapt and move forward with our clients.”  

KLC has advised SRH Marine SAIT on its agreement with Tototheo Maritime to form a new jointly-owned company, MAR360. 

SRH Marine SAIT operates in the digital, navigation, and communication solutions sector for shipping companies. Tototheo Maritime is a maritime telecommunications and technology provider.

“We believe this partnership is an embodiment of our ongoing belief that the future of shipping lies in transparency and collaboration,” said Socrates Theodossiou, Owner, and co-CEO of Tototheo Maritime. “This partnership with SRH Marine SAIT is a natural evolution of our growth as a trusted partner.”

KLC did not reply to our inquiry on the matter.

The COVID-19 crisis that has afflicted Europe throughout this unusual year has necessitated significant changes to the way lawyers work and communicate with and serve their clients. To find out how these changes played out in Greece, we spoke with Yanos Gramatidis, Head of Government & Privatization, and Betty Smyrniou, Head of Labor and Social Benefits and Aviation at Bahas, Gramatidis & Partners.

CEELM: Across much of CEE, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced most commercial lawyers, like almost all employees in companies where it was possible, to work remotely. Did that happen in Greece as well? Can you give us a brief time-line of how the process played out in your firm?

Yanos: Our firm, even during the first lockdown in March 2020, provided all the necessary equipment to support teleworking, before it became mandatory. Accordingly, almost all of the lawyers began teleworking. In the period following the first lockdown it was a mixed situation. Since September 2020, in Greece, mandatory teleworking was introduced for 40% of public and private sector employees performing office work or tasks that can be performed remotely – which increased to 50% and to the maximum of work that can be provided remotely. Our law firm complied with the new measures for office employees, and the number of lawyers teleworking has increased. There are lawyers that in principle work at home. There are other lawyers that divide their time between working at home and working in the office, depending on the needs. However, they have reduced their overall time and presence in the office for health and safety reasons. 

CEELM: Does that mean the office shut down completely?

Betty: No, we didn’t shut down, even during the first lockdown. Our firm remained open during the first lockdown and continues to stay open.

The staff and administration telework in shifts so that the actual personnel present in the office is reduced – but at the same time all needs which require a physical presence are satisfied. Accordingly, we always have a receptionist/secretary in each shift and at the same time their colleagues work at home supporting them. The same thing applies, for example, in our accountancy department.

CEELM: What sort of tools were necessary to make working remotely practical for the firm’s lawyers? Did the firm have those tools at the ready, or was it forced to obtain and install them?

Yanos: Our law firm was already aware of the importance of working remotely and was 100% ready as a result of having obtained the right equipment & software even before the pandemic. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) were set up in collaboration with Cisco Infrastructure for all employees of the firm, so that everybody could stay connected with the office. Of course, supplementary equipment, such as VPN telephone devices, web cameras, and so on, had to be purchased, and lawyers quickly became more and more familiar with the most popular meeting applications, such as Zoom, GoToMeening, Cisco Webex, Microsoft Teams, etc. This helped a lot to maintain our everyday communication with our colleagues and clients.

CEELM: Were all practices equally affected, or were some more able to adapt to this than others?

Betty: Not all practices were equally affected. For instance, it was much easier for our Contracts & Corporate Law practices to adapt to the new circumstances. On the other hand, practices that involve Public Law and Real Estate were significantly affected, as appointments have to be scheduled in advance, slowing down the whole procedure. For example, in the Real Estate practice, appointments were required to visit the Land Registry Office. For litigation, things were a bit more difficult as during the first lockdown the courts were closed, and then, after the courts opened, they were obliged to continue their practice in the frame of the extraordinary COVID-19 conditions.   

CEELM: How effective was it all? Did clients respond positively?

Yanos: Clients, especially multinational companies responded positively, as they were already acquainted with remote work.

Betty: Most of our Greek clients responded positively as well. Our Greek clients managed quite quickly to detach themselves from their offices and become familiar with meeting applications.

CEELM: Are the firm’s lawyers still working remotely, or have things gone back more or less to normal?

Yanos: Now, as we are in the phase of the second lockdown, teleworking has been increased again, or, as mentioned above, lawyers are again dividing their time, and visiting the office less.

CEELM: What would you say were the disadvantages of being forced to work remotely? What were the benefits?

Yanos: The basic disadvantage is the risk of isolation and lack of relationships/group work among colleagues. In my opinion, web-meetings and phone calls between colleagues cannot always replace physical presence, which allows work group members to interact more efficiently. Of course, the same thing applies with clients, as after a certain period of time, communicating only through web-meetings becomes a disadvantage in handling the relationship with the client.

Betty: On the other hand, working remotely allows lawyers to be more effective and leads to positive management results. For my colleagues who live a distance from Athens, not having to deal with everyday traffic from home to work (and back) is a significant advantage.

CEELM: What lessons did you learn from this? How do you think the legal market, in particular, will change as a result of this experience?

Yanos: For a significant period of time the need to work remotely will continue, thus leading to flexible attorneys who can more easily determine their own work schedules and place of work. According to recent surveys, lawyers and law firm staff enjoy working remotely so much that 67% want to continue that arrangement once offices fully reopen following the coronavirus pandemic. Betty, do you think the same will happen with our lawyers?

Betty: When all measures are relaxed and/or lifted, and everyday life returns back to normal, the majority of the lawyers will increase their work from the office. However, as the experience has proved that teleworking is possible also for lawyers, they will divide their time with working from home to the extent and whenever possible.

This Article was originally published in Issue 7.11 of the CEE Legal Matters Magazine. If you would like to receive a hard copy of the magazine, you can subscribe here.

Former Norton Rose Fulbright Partner Dimitris Assimakis and Senior Associate Minas Kitsilis have joined Reed Smith’s Global Corporate Group.

Assimakis, who is based in Athens, becomes the eleventh partner to join Reed Smith’s Global Corporate Group across Europe and the Middle East in the last 12 months. His practice focuses on power and gas; energy infrastructure; clean technologies; and renewable energy. He advises clients on regulatory matters, M&A, project financing, and capital markets and privatization transactions.A

Assimakis spent the last 13 years at Norton Rose Fulbright, and he headed the firm’s Greek Energy practice. He previously spent seven years at Greece’s Kyriakides Georgopolous Law Firm, and has also worked for the European Parliament and the European Commission.

“We are delighted to welcome Dimitris to the team,” commented Delphine Currie, Co-Chair of Reed Smith’s Global Corporate Group. “His technical expertise and knowledge of the energy market is hugely impressive. We’ve made significant investments in the Global Corporate Group in the past 18 months and this most recent hire will greatly benefit our clients across the energy sector.”

Anthony Poulopoulos, Co-Managing Partner of Reed Smith’s Athens office, said: “We are thrilled to be joined by Dimitris who is highly regarded as one of the country’s leading energy lawyers. His appointment underlines our commitment to the region and strengthens our ability to continuing advising foreign investors and Greek financial institutions and corporates alike. Dimitris will make a fantastic addition to the team.”

Assimakis said: “I am very excited to join Reed Smith. It is a firm that has a very strong presence in the energy sector, a fantastic global platform and a renowned corporate team. I look forward to joining and supporting the firm’s clients with an interest in the Greek and SEE energy markets.”

Grace Katsoulis has made Partner at Ballas, Pelecanos & Associates in Athens and has assumed responsibility for the firm’s Company and Employment practice.

Katsoulis joined Ballas, Pelecanos & Associates in 1990. She received her Master’s degree in Law from the University of Exeter in 1995.

According to Ballas, Pelecanos & Associates, “Grace has risen from within our ranks across various departments, [and] her promotion reflects her hard work and dedication to clients and this firm.” According to the firm, “we have every confidence that this appointment will further strengthen and enhance our firm’s capabilities in delivering exceptional legal services and support to our clients.”