Czech Republic

BBH, a leading Czech-Slovak law firm with international reach, is strengthening its management team with a new partner, Ivana Halamová Dobíšková, a leading expert in competition, regulatory, and EU law, who joins BBH from A&O Shearman. Her arrival represents a significant strategic reinforcement, particularly in one of the firm’s key priorities – competition law. The competition law practice has historically been strongly supported primarily by the firm’s top-tier expertise in M&A and dispute resolution and is now receiving another significant boost. With the expansion of the partnership team by Ivana Halamová Dobíšková, individually ranked by Chambers and Partners, BBH is creating one of the most experienced teams with unique competition law expertise on the Czech market. In addition to her many years of experience working for a renowned international law firm, an important part of Ivana Halamová Dobíšková’s professional background was also her experience at the European Commission, where she gained unique insight into the functioning of European institutions and decision-making processes at the EU level. Throughout her practice, she has focused on complex and high-profile matters across various sectors. She has strong experience representing clients in merger clearance proceedings, antitrust investigations before both the European Commission and the Czech Competition Authority, as well as in private enforcement of competition law. “Ivana’s arrival represents a significant strengthening of our ability to provide clients with comprehensive support in merger control, antitrust investigations, and competition litigation. Her experience from international legal practice as well as from European institutions is exceptionally valuable for BBH,” said František Honsa, Managing Partner of BBH.   Unlike many other law firms, BBH is also actively involved in competition litigation, allowing clients to receive full-service representation across the entire spectrum of competition law matters. Ivana Dobíšková Halamová graduated from the Faculty of Law of Charles University in Prague, later obtained an LL.M. degree in European Law from the College of Europe in Bruges, and completed a postgraduate diploma in Economics in Competition Law at King's College London. She also studied at Université Libre de Bruxelles. She speaks Czech, English, and French. Her arrival confirms BBH’s long-term strategy of building top-tier specialist teams capable of handling the most complex mandates at both Czech and EU levels. BBH, advokátní kancelář, s.r.o. is a Czech-Slovak law firm with international reach, providing top-tier legal services primarily in the areas of dispute resolution, mergers and acquisitions, debtor representation in project financing, banking and financial regulation, capital markets regulation, competition law, and insolvency law. BBH’s teams in Prague and Bratislava consist of a total of 110 professionals. The firm and its key experts are regularly ranked among the top positions in prestigious international legal directories such as Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, and IFLR1000.   Contact: David Pilař, Marketing & Communication Manager, tel.: + 420 604 100 491, e-mail: [email protected] Ivana Halamová Dobíšková, Partner, tel: + 420 234 091 355

Weinhold Legal advised Chropyňská Group a.s., a Czech industrial group focused on engineering, manufacturing and technological solutions, on its acquisition of the Slovak company DefTech a.s., a manufacturer of military armoured vehicles. DefTech a.s. has long specialised in the development and production of armoured vehicles primarily intended for armed forces and the security sector. The acquisition represents a strategic step for Chropyňská Group aimed at further expanding its activities in the defence industry within the Central European region. “This transaction was specific not only due to its international dimension but also because of the highly regulated nature of the defence industry. We are pleased to have been able to provide legal support to our client in the implementation of this strategically important acquisition,” said Martin Lukáš, Partner at Weinhold Legal. The legal advice primarily included M&A assistance with transaction structuring, legal due diligence, preparation and negotiation of the transaction documentation, and related corporate matters. The Weinhold Legal team involved in the transaction consisted of Martin Lukáš, Tomáš Čermák, Karin Konečná and Anna Králíková. More info: Chropynska, DefTech About Weinhold Legal Weinhold Legal has been a strong player on the Czech market since the founding of the Prague office in 1996, and boasts a team of several dozen highly qualified lawyers. Weinhold Legal has been highly ranked in international client guides to the best law firms on the market today, among them Legal 500, Chambers Europe and Chambers Global, and IFLR. For more information, please visit our website at http://www.weinholdlegal.com

Weinhold Legal participated in the successful completion of the acquisition of the B&B Hotel in Prague's Florenc district, executed by investment company Amundi Czech Republic, acting on behalf of qualified invest fund, Amundi Realitní fond KB3. The hotel will become part of a transformational project that aims to turn the area into a modern and lucrative space in the coming years. Amundi Czech Republic has long focused on acquisitions of commercial real estate in the Czech Republic and Western Europe. This transaction, in line with the fund's investment strategy, confirms the continued growth of interest in the hotel market in the Czech Republic, which has stabilized after the pandemic and is beginning to show a positive trend. “We are pleased to have provided legal support for this important transaction and to have contributed to the further development of this location. Collaborating on such projects allows us to leverage our experience in real estate transactions,” said Václav Štraser, Managing Associate at Weinhold Legal. The legal support for this transaction was provided by the Weinhold Legal team, consisting of Martin Lukáš, Václav Štraser, and Lenka Němečková Other resources: https://www.amundi-kb.cz/aktualni-informace/aktuality/amundi-realitni-fond-kb3-posiluje-nemovitostni-portfolio-o-prazsky-bb-hotel-sazi-na-transformacni-lo   About Weinhold Legal Weinhold Legal has been a strong player on the Czech market since the founding of the Prague office in 1996, and boasts a team of several dozen highly qualified lawyers. Weinhold Legal has been highly ranked in international client guides to the best law firms on the market today, among them Legal 500, Chambers Europe and Chambers Global, and IFLR. For more information, please visit our website at http://www.weinholdlegal.com

Weinhold Legal is proud to have advised to Resistant AI, a Czech-based fintech firm specializing in AI-powered fraud prevention, in its $25 million Series B funding round. Led by DTCP Growth, with continued support from Experian, Notion Capital, and GV (formerly Google Ventures), this round brings the total capital raised by the company to $53 million. Resistant AI is also supported by the local VC fund, Credo Ventures. Resistant AI, founded in 2019 by Martin Rehák, uses AI to combat financial crime by offering advanced document fraud detection and transaction monitoring services. With this new funding, the company will expand into new markets and enhance its capabilities to address emerging threats, including generative AI fraud and money laundering. "This transaction will allow Resistant AI to expand its document fraud detection and transaction monitoring offerings into new territories and partnerships, and build out its threat intelligence capabilities. We are very proud to help Resistant AI’s in its fraud fighting mission,” said Pav Younis from Weinhold Legal. The legal team from Weinhold Legal supporting the funding round was led by Pav Younis, with Martin Lukas, Sofia Petrova, and Matěj Novák collaborating on the transaction. Resistant AI’s clients include major financial institutions such as AXA and Dun & Bradstreet. The company’s solutions have helped clients achieve significant improvements in fraud detection and prevention. Other resources: CzechCrunch, EU - Startups