Al Kamel Law Office’s telecoms practice runs the full spectrum of services, including regulatory compliance, corporate structuring, due diligence, licensing, and advice on contractual protection. The firm counts high-profile national and international TMT companies amongst its clients, such as Microsoft and Fox News. Acquisitions and transfer of shares are also part of the practice’s expertise. The two partners Mohamed Kamel and Sayed Ammar jointly head the team and both have extensive experience in advising global corporations on contentious and non-contentious matters.
TMT in Egypt
Al Kamel Law Office
Practice head(s):
Mohamed Kamel; Sayed Ammar
Key clients
Telecom Italia
Mobinil
France Télécom and Orange
i2
Microsoft
Etisalat Egypt
Sk c&c – affiliated computer services
Inc. (a Xerox company)
British telecom – middle was broadcasting networks Inc. (mbn)
The World Bank
Windsor Business Center
Chevron
Jones Day
Baker Hughes Limited
Fox News
Al Tamimi & Company
Al Tamimi & Company’s TMT practice handles a wide range of matters, including transactions, technology procurement and infrastructure, electronic and mobile commerce, as well as business process and IT outsourcing. ‘They are more than responsive, and have rich experience working with TMT giants’, says a client about the team. Ayman Nour often handles work for multinational corporations, and senior associate Hadia El Beshry is experienced in data protection matters, compliance, and licensing, amongst others.
Other key lawyers:
Ayman Nour; Hadia El Beshry
Testimonials
‘They are more than responsive, and have rich experience working with TMT giants.’
‘Hadia El Beshry is a star associate, with expertise in the TMT practice.’
‘Knowledgeable, reliable and pragmatic Egyptian expertise.’
Key clients
Didi Global
Netflix
Red Bull GMBH
Cisco Systems
Toyota Motor Corporation
Idemia
Butterfly Network
Biersdorf
ByteDance LTD
Riot Games
Sound Cloud
Wabi Casa
SpeedCast
Work highlights
- Advising Toyota on the introduction of a fingerprint authentication system to vehicles sold in Egypt in light of relevant local privacy laws.
- Preparing a general summary of content related considerations that reflect topics that have potential to cause issues from a content regulatory perspective in Egypt.
- Advising Riot Games on matters related to the potential authorisations/notifications which may be required because of the competitions it may organize in Egypt.
Matouk Bassiouny & Hennawy
Matouk Bassiouny & Hennawy is one of the leading TMT practices, with a strong footing in the media, technology, and telecommunication sectors. Counting mobile operator Etisalat Misr, Sony Pictures and Uber to its client roster, the firm’s services include handling day-to-day operations, regulatory work, and contentious matters. Practice head Mohamed Shehata specialises in handling major commercial disputes and has extensive experience in arbitration disputes. Counsels Ahmed Abdel Hakeem and Amr Ehab are also recommended, with the former focusing on blue-chip clients, while Ehab is well versed in major litigation and regulatory matters.
Practice head(s):
Mohamed Shehata
Other key lawyers:
Amr Ehab; Ahmed Abdel Hakeem
Testimonials
‘We were in need of a renowned regulatory practice, and Matouk Bassiouny have a reputation for being the leaders in their field in Egypt. They were able to deliver advice that was clear, appropriate to our needs, and prompt.’
Key clients
Halan for Technology and Services
Etisalat Misr
Uber
Sony Pictures
NymCard
Ashtar
Money Fellows
IHS Towers
Digital Virgo
Telecom Italia Sparkle
Work highlights
- Represented Etisalat Misr before the Egyptian State Council courts against the Information Technology Industry Development Agency “ITIDA”, challenging the latter’s imposed fees. The firm successfully managed to reach a favourable settlement for Etisalat Misr and put an end to Etisalat Misr’s historical disputes with the ITIDA.
- Representing Sony before the Egyptian State Council courts challenging the Trademark Office decision in respect to the opposition denial of one of their famous trademarks against an Egyptian entity.
- Advised Nymcard on the incorporation of their Egyptian branch, operations in Egypt, FinTech licensing, and banking agreements in addition to general corporate work.
Shahid Law Firm
The Technology, Media and Telecommunications practice at Shahid Law Firm is a key player in this area, with a client portfolio that includes Nokia and Netflix. With the launch of Venture by Shahid in 2019, the firm has also established its own department exclusively focused on advising start-ups. Tarek Badawy constitutes one half of the practice lead and is regularly involved in regulatory, privacy-related, anti-trust, and competition matters in addition to broadcasting disputes and contractual work. Sameh Attia is the second practice head with a focus on domestic and international arbitration and litigation. Rehan Elbashary is also active in the area.
Practice head(s):
Tarek Badawy: Sameh Attia
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘My contact at Shahid Law is Tarek Badawy: he is excellent. His advice is clear, straight to the point and does not shy away from drawing clear-cut conclusions when possible. His English is perfect and feedback is provided very promptly.’
Key clients
Confederation of African Football (“CAF”)
Middle East Broadcasting Center (MBC) and O3 Productions
Nokia Corporation
Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital
Neflix IO Productions LLC, Netherlands
Statsbomb Services Limited
Vitabiotics Egypt
HyperPay Inc
Glaxosmithkline Egypt
Business Boomers for E-Commerce LLC
SWVL
Work highlights
- Represented the Confederation of African Football against LagardèreSports in ICC Emergency Arbitration proceedings initiated by Largardère in connection with the termination of a 29-year USD 1 Billion contract for the commercial exploitation of CAF Competitions; and act for CAF before the COMESA Competition Commission in the first investigation involving the sports media industry.
- Advised Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital from an Egyptian law standpoint on its business combination with Swvl.
- Successfully defended ThomsonReuters in one of the most important media broadcasting cases before the Administrative Court, in relation to an attempt to closethe Thomason Reuters office in Egypt and put an end to professional activities spanning 70+ years.
Zaki Hashem & Partners, Attorneys at Law
‘Zaki Hashem & Partners, Attorneys at Law's approach is to build a deep understanding of their client’s business and a long term relationship’, says a client about the firm’s TMT practice, which covers the telecoms sector, media and sports, as well as start-ups and electronic platforms. The firm has been involved in a number of groundbreaking transactions in the past and counts clients such as Nokia, LG and Vodafone Egypt in its roster. Yasser Hashem leads the team and is particularly specialised in telecommunications. Dina Kamel and Tamer Gamal are also recommended for their TMT experience.
Practice head(s):
Yasser Hashem
Other key lawyers:
Dina Kamel; Tamer Gamal
Testimonials
‘The team has a very good understanding of the industries that we intend to engage in the market.’
‘We dealt with Dina Kamel as the partner of the firm. She’s very confident and has broad knowledge of the areas we’re interested in.’
‘It is very rare to find a TMT law firm that has the breadth of business, regulatory, and financial knowledge coupled with outstanding private sector and governmental relationships as does Zaki Hesham & Partners. They have been instrumental in guiding us through every step of our growth in Egypt and have become an integral part of our success.’
‘Yasser Hesham is not our attorney, he is a friend, mentor, and colleague, his knowledge of the TMT sector, Egypt, and Egyptian Law is second to none. I do not write this lightly as I do not give accolades easily, however with respect to Yasser Hesham there is not one shred of hesitation on my part to recommend him to yourselves, our customers, and friends as the firm and lawyer to engage in Egypt.
‘Dina Kamel is the Partner we work with on a day to day basis. Her knowledge of the TMT sector and regulatory framework is outstanding, but more important is her approach, she listens, analyses, and then formulates a response to any issues we discuss. Dina is a problem solver!’
‘The team is unique in that they understand the speed and pace of technology startups as they are available literally 24/7 and respond very quickly which is to us very unique. As to innovations they use all new technology solutions in collaboration, communication, billing etc. which is great to us as a tech company. They also include technological recommendations in their solutions which is highly innovative’
‘They have great empathy for the speed we work at and they cater to us very quickly. They also understand our model and the regulations of our industry inside out and they always impress us with the updates in our sector that they are aware of. We trust them blindly and would want to work with those individuals.’
Key clients
AIG Egypt Insurance Company & AIG MEA Limited
Citibank
COMMONWEALTH WARGRAVES
Emerging Markets Payments Africa SAE & Network International Egypt, SAE (among other companies within the Group)
TLS contact
Actel Egypt
Alcatel
AT&T
Cisco Systems
Fawry for Banking & Payment Technology Services
Orange
Global Peering Exchange (GPX)
Masary Electronic Payments
Menatel
NEC Europe
NEC Turkey
NEC Telecommunication & Information Technology, Ltd,
Nokia Siemens Networks
Raya Holding Co. for Technology & Telecommunications
Raya Contact Center (RCC)
SI-Ware Systems Limited
Softec International
Vodafone Egypt Telecommunications SAE
EMC Corporation (Dell)
LG Electronics Inc., Egypt
NxtVn – Finland
Liwwa for Trading SAE
Friedrich Naumann Stiftung Foundation
Coda Payments
Omron Healthcare Europe B.V
Work highlights
- Advising Vodafone Egypt in the renewal of Annex VIII of its license.
- Advising Khazna on the appropriate legal structure related to the services of salary advance in Egypt and other micro finance, nano finance, and consumer finance licenses.
- Advising Orcasand drafting the termsand conditions for tutors and users.
ADSERO-Ragy Soliman & Partners
Having been established in 2019, ADSERO-Ragy Soliman & Partners, has built a name for itself in the Telecommunication, Media and Technology sector in a relatively short amount of time. The firm advises a host of high-profile clients on matters such as drafting contracts and terms of agreements, licensing, and cybercrime. Practice head Mohamed Abdelgawad has extensive experience in this area, including cyber security data protection, fintech and electronic signatures. Managing associate Darah Zakaria and senior associate Nariman Roushdy, who joined the team in 2021, are also heavily involved in TMT-related work.
Practice head(s):
Mohamed Abdelgawad
Other key lawyers:
Darah Zakaria; Norman Roushdy
Testimonials
‘Helpful, responsive and extremely flexible to our needs’
‘Mohamed Abdelgawad is a pleasure to deal with’
‘Adsero provides diligent and high-quality service and at partner level has strong insight and knowledge of the TMT sector in Egypt.’
‘Mohamed Abdelgawad knows the TMT sector in Egypt and has good relationships with relevant public sector bodies as well as with significant TMT businesses. He is always accessible and responsive and ensures his team delivers good quality output.’
Helmy, Hamza & Partners (member firm of Baker & McKenzie International)
Helmy, Hamza & Partners (member firm of Baker & McKenzie International) provides legal services along the lines of fintech and e-commerce, technology agreements, outsourcing, data security and privacy, digital media and telecommunications. The team is experienced in handling transactions as well as contentious matters for multinational clients, among them Telecom Egypt. Practice head Ghada El Ehwany has recently advised technology and media companies on market entry matters, while Mohamed Barakat is specialised in cross-border transactions and capital market work.
Practice head(s):
Ghada El Ehwany
Other key lawyers:
Mohamed Barakat
Shalakany Law Office
The TMT practice at Shalakany Law Office assists clients with contracts and agreements, contentious matters and a wide variety of data-related issues. Regulatory matters are also part of the team’s portfolio, which includes social media and technology companies. The practice is led by Sharif Shehata, whose specialisations include IT contracts and intellectual property.
Practice head(s):
Sharif Shihata
Soliman, Hashish & Partners
Soliman, Hashish & Partners joins the ranking with extensive experience in the TMT sector, including due diligence, technology transfers, and licensing, amongst others. The firm counts global companies such as Amazon and TikTok to its client roster. Mohamed Hashish heads the team and is well versed in the corporate and regulatory intersections with TMT.
Practice head(s):
Mohamed Hashish
Testimonials
‘The team is very responsive and knowledgeable of local laws. They are willing to go the extra mile to provide an advice or close a deal.’
‘Excellent legal advice regarding activities in Egypt and other middle east countries.’
‘Mohamed Hashish is knowledgeable, professional and provided services in a timely manner. We have valued his guidance and input and we have appreciated his attention to our needs in terms of both work product and timing.’
‘They have great experience in how things are applied in practice which is not necessarily in line with the plain text of the law.’
‘The team is very responsive to requests and offers good quality advice at a fair price. The team also proactively informs us in relation to local market insight and developments.’
‘Proactive and persistent on findings solutions.’
‘We work mostly with Mohamed Hashish. He embodies the qualities noted above with respect to how the team performs.’
Key clients
Africa Crest Education Group
Amazon
Applied Technology & Management Inc
Arizona State University
Babcock & Wilcox
BRF
DXC Technology
Fiserv
Fluor
Foton Motor
Gaara
General Electric
Geo-Chem
Gianaclis
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Hikvision
Honeywell
Kellogg
L3 Technology
Mapei
Mott MacDonald
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise
Polimeros Mexicanos
Porsche
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Promethean World
Quintessentially
Radio Holland
RKW
SABIS
STC Pay
TikTok
Truecaller
UEFA
Univar
Vicat
Vnesheconombank
Wabtec Inc.
World Bank Group
Zoomcar
Work highlights
- Acted as legal counsel to Promethean World/NetDragon WebSoft Holdings with respect to the first ever online education platform in Egypt.
- Acted as legal counsel to IBM with respect to obtaining the first ever WAN license in Egypt.
- Advising TikTok on the new Data Protection Law.