Category: Lithuania

Cobalt has advised Practica Capital on its investment in Lithuanian start-up Biomatter Designs — part of the latter’s EUR 500,000 investment round.

Biomatter Designs is a developer of a machine-learning powered platform for computational protein design.

According to Cobalt, 70V and several angel investors participated in the round as well. The firm reported that the funds raised by Biomatter Designs will enable to to further drive its artificial intelligence platform to develop computational methods for designing new protein molecules.

Cobalt’s team consisted of Partner Eva Suduiko and Senior Associate Aurelija Balciune.

Cobalt did not reply to an inquiry about the deal.

Greenberg Traurig has advised OTB Ventures on its provision of early stage funding to Ondato, a Vilnius-based company providing know-your-customer compliance management solutions.

OTB Ventures is a venture capital fund focused on tech start-ups in Central and Eastern Europe.

Ondato’s solutions include photo and live video identity verification, data monitoring, screening, due-diligence, and risk scoring.

The Greenberg Traurig team consisted of, in London, Partner Sarah Moyles, Associate Amrik Singh Bhella, and Trainee Solicitor Justin Hool; and in Warsaw, Partner Aleksander Janiszewski and Senior Associate Paulina Kimla-Kaczorowska.

Greenberg Traurig could not provide any further information about the deal.

Cobalt has advised the PREF III investment fund on its acquisition of a shopping center in Kaunas from Globalus Investicinia Sprendimai. Ellex Valiunas reportedly advised the seller.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

According to Cobalt, the PREF III fund “has successfully expanded its portfolio of assets under management, which, after this transaction, consists of three shopping centers in Riga, Kaunas, and Palanga.”

Cobalt’s team consisted of Partner Simona Oliskeviciute-Ciceniene and Associate Kostas Grigaitis.

Cobalt has advised Betonika on the sale of its production base in Kaunas to Peikko Lietuva. Wint advised the buyer on the deal.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Betonika is a Lithuania-based manufacturer of prefabricated reinforced concrete structures for buildings. According to Cobalt, the company has moved all its activities from Kaunas to its production base in Trakai.

Peikko Lietuva is a Finnish manufacturer of reinforced concrete joints and building composite structures for both prefabricated and monolithic reinforced concrete.

Cobalt’s team consisted of Partner Arturas Kojala, Managing Associate Ausrys Sliavas, and Andrius Kazlauskas.

Wint’s team was led by Partner Olga Petroseviciene.

Deloitte Legal has advised Kursenu ZUB on the intra-group restructuring of its four subsidiaries.

Deloitte Legal describes Kursenu ZUB as “one of the leading regional agricultural companies, owning one of the most modern livestock complexes in Lithuania.” The restructuring included a change of legal form of three private limited liability companies to agricultural companies and their subsequent merger into Kursenu ZUB. 

Deloitte Legal’s team included Partner Tomas Davidonis, Managing Associate Tomas Mieliauskas, Associate Andrej Jemeljanov, and Assistant Lawyer Greta Lebednykaite. 

Former Managing Associate Kristina Sabaliauskiene, who heads the firm’s Real Estate and Construction practice in Lithuania, has been promoted to partner at CEE Attorneys in Vilnius.

Sabaliauskiene is a graduate of Vilnius University. Prior to joining CEE Attorneys in 2016, she spent over nine years in-house with AB Hanner.

TGS Baltic has successfully represented LTG Infra, a subsidiary of Lithuania’s Lietuvos Gelezinkeliai railways group, in a dispute with Hidrostatyba over damages allegedly incurred by one of LTG Infra’s contractors.

According to TGS Baltic, the Klaipeda Regional Court “rejected the statement of claim in full and concluded that the contractor [hired by LTG Infra] fully assumed the risk in connection with performance of [its] contract.“ The firm reported that, “the court also acknowledged [Hidrostatyba] did not comply with the mandatory pre-litigation provision.“ Hidrostatyba did not file an appeal of the decision. 

TGS Baltic‘s team consisted of Senior Associate Tadas Varapnickas and Associate Egle Masyte.

Cobalt has advised the SEB Bank and Public Investment Development Agency on their provision of a EUR 8.4 million loan to BaltCap Infrustructure Fund and the Kaunas District Municipality, designed to finance the renovation of schools in the the towns of Zapyskis, Kacergine, and Mastaiciai and the modernization of the Mastaiciai swimming pool.

According to Cobalt, “after the renovation, the schools will be able to educate additional 500 students from the surrounding areas, so they will no longer have to go to schools far from home on a daily basis.”

“The population of Kaunas district has increased by almost ten percent during the last five years — eight thousand permanent population — so it is natural that the number of schoolchildren is increasing, and the older local schools cannot always meet their needs,” said Vilius Juzikis, Director of SEB’s Business Banking Department.

Cobalt’s team consisted of Partners Simona Oliskeviciute-Ciceniene and Eva Suduiko, Managing Associate Ausrys Sliavas, and Associate Ignas Jurkynas.

Walless has helped Safe Connect, UAB, obtain a payment institution license from the Bank of Lithuania, allowing it to to offer payment services indicated in the Republic of Lithuania’s Law on Payments.

Safe Connect is wholly owned by Yapily Ltd — a company registered in the United Kingdom with the main shareholders from Italy, Germany, and Guernsey. According to Walless, “after receiving a payment institution license, the company plans to operate similarly to Safe Connect Ltd, an institution licensed in the United Kingdom, by offering open banking and account information and payment initiation services. After Brexit, current Safe Connect Ltd customers based in the United Kingdom will be served by the institution operating in Lithuania.

Walless’s team consisted of Partner Joana Baublyte-Kulviete and Associate Partner Lina Radaviciene.

Former TGS Baltic Associated Partner Vytautas Silinskas has left the firm to become Vice Minister at Lithuania’s Ministry of Social Security and Labor.

Silinskas spent the past twelve and a half years with TGS Baltic (and its various legacy firm predecessors), becoming an Associated Partner in December, 2020 (as reported by CEE Legal Matters on December 8, 2020). He received his Master’s degree from Vilnius University in 2010.

“I look forward creating as much value as I can by helping people as much as possible,” Silinskas said on his choice to join the government. “I felt a need to grow faster and I was looking for more responsibility for some time already. I was planning to continue growing at TGS — I started studying for an Executive MBA — but the newly elected Lithuanian government looks promising and I could not refuse a request to join it.”