The Legal 500

Bulgaria

Banking, finance and capital markets

Banking, finance and capital markets - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

The 'helpful and knowledgeable' team at Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov is ’prompt and clear in its advice’ to major domestic and international clients on secured transactions, debt restructuring, stock exchange listings, and initial and secondary public offerings, among other matters. Nikolai Gouginski jointly leads the banking and finance group with Vessela Stancheva-Mincheva, and the 'capable and knowledgeable’ Georgi Tzvetkov advised PPF on the €3bn cross-border financing of its purchase of Telenor’s assets in the CEE region. Other clients include City Clinic, Etem, Barclays Capital and Citibank.

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Commercial, corporate and M&A

Commercial, corporate and M&A - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov advises on domestic and cross-border transactions in a range of sectors, including manufacturing, IT, banking and energy, and counts global companies such as Amazon, Dell and Lukoil among its clients. Zdravka Ugrinova, who advises on acquisitions, reorganisations and complex corporate matters, and Violetta Kunze head the team, and senior associate Valentin Bojilov is also noted. The team advised on the €100m acquisition of Bulgartabac, the leading Bulgarian cigarette maker, by British American Tobacco; Kunze assisted with the due diligence process, the preparation of transaction documents and the negotiations.

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Dispute resolution

Dispute resolution - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov is ‘recognised as a key player’ in the field, with a 'strong track record' of representing clients in litigation and local and international arbitration proceedings. The ‘extremely attentive and always available’ team includes practice head Angel Ganev, ‘an experienced litigator handling complex cases’, and senior associates Simeon Simeonov, who is ‘dedicated and multitasks with ease’, and Gergana Monovska, who specialises in commercial and environmental litigation. Genev and Georgi Tzvetkov  represented the State General Reserve Fund of the Sultanate of Oman before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in a €150m claim against the Republic of Bulgaria relating to the termination of the banking licence of Corporate Commercial Bank. Other clients include CEZ Electro Bulgaria, Facebook and Deroni.

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EU and competition

EU and competition - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov is ‘clearly a tier 1 firm thanks to its knowledge of competition law and its practical handling of cases’; it advises clients such as BMW, British American Tobacco, Honeywell and Lukoil on merger control, cartel investigations, horizontal and vertical restraints on trade, and abuse of dominant position, among other matters. The ‘very experienced' Nikolai Gouginski heads the team; senior associates Dr Anton Petrov, who regularly represents clients in unfair competition disputes, and Desislava Iordanova, who focuses on compliance, are also recommended. The team advised Nikon on an investigation launched by the Commission for Protection of Competition into alleged abuse of dominant position and prohibited practices in vertical agreements with regard to the structuring of its selective distribution system in Bulgaria.

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Energy and natural resources

Energy and natural resources - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov regularly advises on the setting up of energy businesses in Bulgaria, and is noted for its ‘flexibility, effectiveness and deep knowledge’ and 'loyal partnerships' with clients including CEZ Electro Bulgaria, Contourglobal Maritsa East 3, Emerson and Gazprom Marketing & Trading. The practice is led by Georgi Goudiniski and the ‘highly qualified’ Milan Pandev, who focuses on oil and gas projects; senior associates Anton Krustev, who is ‘a recognised expert in the field’, and Yassen Spassov, who has experience in advising on the construction of new power facilities, power generation, and gas distribution and trading, are also noted. The team represented Citigroup Global Markets, as sole bookrunner and lead manager, in relation to Bulgarian Energy Holding’s third eurobond issue, in the amount of €400m, to be listed on the Irish Stock Exchange.

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Healthcare and life sciences

Healthcare and life sciences - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov provides ‘good expertise, fast reaction times and reliable support’ to domestic and international life sciences companies, wholesalers, pharmacy chains, hospitals and medical institutions. The department handles healthcare infrastructure matters, M&A, regulatory issues and IP mandates; the team recently acted for Medilab in several pre-litigation cases relating to its business connections with foreign manufacturers and suppliers. Kalina Tchakarova heads up the group and acts for pharmaceutical companies on medical product matters; other key practitioners include Georgi Tzvetkov and senior associates Valentin Bojilov, Milka Ivanova and Anton Petrov.

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Intellectual property

Intellectual property - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

With 'high levels of professionalism, excellent market knowledge and an exhaustive approach', Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov fields a ‘strong and responsive’ team, which utilises its 'great skill levels to handle a difficult legal environment'. Department head Kalina Tchakarova has 'outstanding legal expertise' placing her as 'one of the best IP lawyers in the country'; other key practitioners include senior associate Dessislava Iordanova, who handles global branding strategies, trade mark registrations and IP disputes; associate Kamen Gogov, who focuses on trade mark, design and patent work; and associate Patricia Cherkezova, who is 'always willing to go the extra mile'. The group's recent work includes advising Wizz Air Hungary on its registration of a single colour trade mark; other clients include Carlsberg, Red Bull, Transport for London and Universal Pictures International.

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Projects and PPP

Projects and PPP - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov is recognised for its infrastructure and PPP project expertise with notable knowledge of projects and concession matters in the transport and utilities sectors. Milan Pandev leads the public procurement group, which also includes Stephan Kyutchukov and Nikolai Gouginski; Pandev is a key name for power generation and distribution sector matters, Kyutchukov focuses on real estate, concession and infrastructure projects, and Gouginski handles project financing work. Recent mandates include advising Eurolease Auto on its involvement in a tender process for the leasing of 20 electric buses, and assisting Erste with the project financing of a thermal power station.

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Real estate and construction

Real estate and construction - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov focuses on public procurement, the development, acquisition and disposal of commercial properties, and the lease of industrial and office spaces, as well as advising foreign and domestic contractors on the implementation of FIDIC contracts and their compatibility with the local construction law framework. Notable individuals are practice head Stephan Kyutchukov and senior associates Nikolina Stefanova and Kaloyan Krumov. VMware, OMV and Karsch Capital Management are long-term clients; significant new clients include Kaufland and the Body Shop. The team advised NEPI Rockcastle on the €253m acquisition of Paradise Center in Sofia, the biggest real estate deal in Bulgaria.

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TMT

TMT - ranked: tier 1

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov has 'an ideal combination of technical and legal understanding' and is 'well connected in the Bulgarian market while also clearly understanding how global companies work'. Violetta Kunze heads up the telecoms and media practice group and Youliana Naoumova leads the data protection team; other key names include Omourtag Petkov, Kalina Tchakarova and senior associate Milka Ivanova, who is 'willing to think outside the box'. Kunze recently advised PPF on its acquisition of Telenor Bulgaria and also assisted Google with the regulatory and licensing requirements related to its technical infrastructure. Other clients include Amazon UK Services, Booking.com, Facebook and Spotify.

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