Category: Turkiye

Baker McKenzie and its Turkish affiliate Esin Attorney Partnership advised DFDS on its acquisition of Ekol Transport and the international transport network connecting Turkiye and Europe from Ekol Logistics and individual sellers led by founder Ahmet Musul. Caliskan Okkan Toker reportedly advised the sellers.

DFDS is a Danish international shipping and logistics company.

According to Esin Attorney Partnership, Ekol Transport conducts international transportation business in Europe with more than 10 subsidiaries established in Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, Hungary, France, the Netherlands, Greece, Romania, and Slovenia.

The Esin Attorney Partnership team included Managing Partner Eren Kursun, Partner Orcun Solak, and Associates Mehmetcan Atasoy, Batuhan Hamamcioglu, Hilal Aydin, Kaan Karagol, and Bera Pektas.

The Baker McKenzie team included Warsaw-based Managing Partner Weronika Achramowicz and Associates Michal Pakosz, Hanna Wiejowska, Anna Pawluczuk, and Mikolaj Karniszewski, Budapest-based Partner Akos Fehervary and Associate Nora Zsuzsanna Kovacs, as well as further lawyers in Germany, Italy, Spain, Hungary, France, and the Netherlands.

Editor’s Note: After this article was published, Caliskan Okkan Toker confirmed its involvement to CEE Legal Matters. The firm’s team included Partners Sezer Caliskan and Mustafa Toker and Senior Associate Hazal Boduroglu.

Additionally, Zepos & Yannopoulos announced that it had advised DFDS. The firm’s team included Partner Stefanos Charaktiniotis, Senior Associates Elpida Karathodorou and Anastasia Veneti, and Associate Rania Koliouli.

Paksoy, working with Milbank, has advised General Atlantic on its USD 500 million lead investment in Insider’s series E funding round.

General Atlantic is an American growth equity firm.

Insider is a Turkish software company specializing in AI-powered customer experience and customer engagement solutions.

The Paksoy team included Partner Ayse Demirel Atakan, Senior Associate Pinar Babaoglu, and Associate Sibel Postacioglu. 

Paksoy did not respond to our inquiry on the matter.

CCAO has advised Akbank on the financing of solar power plants operated by Sunar Misir.

According to CCAO, Sunar Misir’s core business is providing raw materials to a variety of sectors including food, textile, and paper, with its various products such as glucose and isoglucose, natural starch, modified starch, dextrin, polyol, corn bran, corn germ, and corn gluten. “This project for solar power plants, which fall within the scope of green energy, includes the financing of four separate power plants in four different provinces of Turkiye, two of which will be used for commercial purposes and two for self-consumption, with a loan provided by Akbank,” a firm press release stated.

The CCAO team included Partner Candemir Baltali and Associate Can Demirkan.

Former Dogan Holding Chief Legal Counsel Ebru Ersoy has become the new Chief Legal Counsel at Nurol Bank.

Nurol Bank is a financial services company based in Istanbul.

Before the move, Ersoy was with Dogan Holding between 2023 and 2024. Earlier, she was the Chief Legal Counsel at Odeabank between 2017 and 2023 and, earlier still, the Director, Head of Legal, Chairman of the Audit Committee, and Board Member at RBS International between 2004 and 2017.

She began her career with Pekin & Bayar as a Lawyer between 1999 and 2004.

Originally reported by CEE In-House Matters.

Paksoy has advised Turkven on the acquisition of Medianova.

The transaction remains contingent on regulatory approval.

Turkven is a Turkish private equity firm.

Medianova is a content delivery network and cloud security provider. 

According to Paksoy, this investment will enable Medianova to extend its digital infrastructure innovations, focusing on next-generation content delivery, security, and big data solutions.

The Paksoy team included Partners Ayse Demirel Atakan and Togan Turan, Senior Associate Melisa Sevinc, and Associate Selen Toma.

Editor’s Note: After this article was published, CEE Legal Matters learned that Moral Kinikoglu Pamukkale advised the seller, Mete Can Sevim. The firm’s team included Managing Partner Resat Moral, Partner Serra Haviyo, Senior Associate Egemen Akyol, and Associate Selen Akgun.

Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli has advised Vitol and its Turkish subsidiary Petrol Ofisi on the acquisition of BP’s Turkish downstream fuel operations. Gen Temizer, working with Ashurst, advised BP.

Vitol is an energy and commodities company. 

BP is a British multinational oil and gas company.

The Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli team included Partner Umut Kolcuoglu, Counsels Begum Incecam and Neyzar Unubol, Managing Associate Busra Ozden, Senior Associates Ipek Yuksel, Ali Tuncsav, and Orcan Cetinkaya, and Associates Berkay Unel and Irem Okur.

The Gen Temizer team included Partners Baran Gen, Bulut Girgin, Omer Erdogan, and Ebru Temizer and Associates Dilara Demir, Talha Sazak, Beyza Olcer, Orcun Horozoglu, Irmak Seymen Varat, and Simru Tayfun.

Editor’s Note: After this article was published, Baykal Saris informed CEE Legal Matters that it advised the sellers. The firm’s team included Partner Cemre Demirkaya and Associate Dilara Topanoglu.

CCAO has advised Akbank on its financing of the acquisition of Karbonsan by investors advised by Turkven.

Karbonsan’s core business is manufacturing mobile and storage tanks for extremely cold liquids.

Turkven is a Turkish private equity firm.

The CCAO team included Partner Candemir Baltali and Associate Ecem Ozbek.

Editor’s Note: After this article was published, CEE Legal Matters learned that Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli advised Turkven and White & Case’s affiliate law firm GKC Partners advised Kanga Limited, controlled by a Turkven owned-fund, on the acquisition of Karbonsan.

The Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli team included Partner Bihter Bozbay Inan, Senior Associate Nejan Duman, and Associates Ilay Eraslan and Nisanur Yilmaz.

The GKC Partners team included Partner Gokce Uluc and Associates Aybike Iplikci, Ekin Cinar, and Efe Soysal.

White & Case Turkish affiliate GKC Partners has advised Enerjisa Uretim on up to USD 1.012 billion in financing from a syndicate of lenders including Akbank, DEG, U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, HSBC, J.P. Morgan, KfW IPEX-Bank, and Proparco for the development and construction of 750-megawatt wind energy power plants in the Aegean region of Turkiye. Clifford Chance and its Turkish affiliate law firm Ciftci Attorney Partnership reportedly advised the banks.

According to GKC Partners, part of the loans are partially backed by Euler Hermes with an export credit cover. “This transaction is the largest wind power plant financing in the history of the Republic of Turkiye.”

Partners Guniz Gokce, Sebastian Buss, and Ates Turnaoglu and Associates Can Argon, Ahmet Ekin Cinar, and Deniz Alkan.

White & Case Turkish affiliate GKC Partners has advised Borusan EnBW Enerji on a USD 120 million facility extended by Akbank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Turkiye Is Bankasi, and Turkiye Sinai Kalkinma Bankasi.

According to GKC Partners, “the financing will be used to construct the 80-megawatt Pelit Wind Power Plant in Sivas and for a 36.3-megawatt capacity increase at the Balabanli Wind Power Plant in Tekirdag, Turkiye.”

The GKC Partners team included Partners Guniz Gokce, Sebastian Buss, and Ates Turnaoglu and Associates Aybike Iplikci, Kaan Alkan, Sertac Yuksel, and Deniz Alkan.

GKC Partners did not respond to our inquiry on the matter.

Editor’s Note: After this article was published, A&O Shearman and its Turkish affiliate law firm of Gedik & Eraksoy announced that they advised the lenders. The Gedik & Eraksoy team included Partner Umut Gurgey, Senior Associate Dilsah Gurses Erulutekin, and Associate Melis iılmaz Diler.

Ergun, working with White & Case, has advised J.P. Morgan on ICA’s issuance of USD 405 million 7.536% secured amortizing notes which will be used to finance the completion of the build-operate-transfer model Sariyer-Kilyos Tunnel which is part of the Third Bridge project in Turkiye. Lexist, working with Watson Farley & Williams, advised ICA. Verdi Law Firm, working with Clifford Chance, reportedly advised the existing lenders.

According to Ergun, this deal represents the first financing through bond issuance of a motorway public-private partnership deal in Turkiye. “It involved the issuance of project bonds by ICA Ictas Altyapi Yavuz Sultan Selim Koprusu ve Kuzey Cevre Otoyolu Yatirim ve Isletme, a group company of IC Holding, and a debt assumption undertaking by Ministry of Treasury and Finance of the Republic of Turkiye.”

The Ergun team included Partners Lara Sezerler, Cagdas Evrim Ergun, and Pelin Ecevit, Associates Oyku Su Karahan, Serra Nur Celik, and Melis Kaim, and Legal Trainees Selcen Ileri and Nazan Eda Mumcu.

The Lexist team included Partner Murat Erbilen, Counsel Duygu Ozturk Dincer, and Trainee Lawyer Ceyda Serra Yasar. 

Editor’s Note: After this article was published, White & Case and its Turkish affiliate GKC Partners announced that they have advised initial purchaser J.P. Morgan Securities. The GKC Partners team included Partner Sebastian Buss and Associated Partner Guniz Gokce. The White & Case team included London-based Partner Stuart Matty and Associates Hashim Eltumi and Anu Alamutu.