Firm Profile > Penkov, Markov & Partners > Sofia, Bulgaria
Penkov, Markov & Partners Offices
IZTOK DISTRICT, TINTYAVA 13B
FLOOR 6
1113 SOFIA
Bulgaria
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Penkov, Markov & Partners > The Legal 500 Rankings
Commercial, corporate and M&A Tier 2
The 'well-prepared, trustworthy and profoundly knowledgeable' team at Penkov, Markov & Partners advises on a wide range of corporate and commercial matters, including high-profile M&A transactions, disposals, restructurings, and complex joint ventures. Chairman Vladimir Penkov; ‘the personally engaged and highly experienced’ Ivan Markov; recently promoted partner Alexander Stefanov; Atanas Valov; and the 'standout' Roman Stoyanov are key contacts. The ‘dedicated’ Milena Gaidarska advised on the €253m sale of the owner of the Paradise Center shopping mall in Sofia, the largest retail transaction on the Bulgarian market so far. Clients include the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Integrated Food and Acronis.
EU and competition Tier 2
Penkov, Markov & Partners advises clients on EU regulations, public procurement and unfair competition issues. Key contacts include practice co-head Vladimir Penkov and recently promoted partner Yura Mincheva, who regularly represents clients in merger notification proceedings. In a recent highlight, the team successfully obtained clearance for the merger of two domestic companies in the armament industry. Uber, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, CEZ and Heineken are major clients.
Healthcare and life sciences Tier 2
Recent highlights for Penkov, Markov & Partners include advising a pharmaceutical company on the regulatory requirements related to donating prescription medicinal products to healthcare institutions, and acting for a client in unfair competition proceedings. Vladimir Penkov jointly leads the practice with Roman Stoyanov; Penkov regularly acts for developers of medicinal products, medical devices, healthcare products and food supplements.
Intellectual property Tier 2
Penkov, Markov & Partners' IP expertise encompasses contentious matters, IP agreements and the sale and purchase of IP rights. Vladimir Penkov and senior associate Yordan Politov jointly lead the group; Politov is singled out as ‘one of the leading lawyers in the field’ and provides ‘useful and on-point advice on copyright issues’.
Real estate and construction Tier 2
Penkov, Markov & Partners advises on the financing, acquisition, disposition and development of various types of projects, with a particular focus on the commercialisation and development of shopping centres. Notable individuals in the sector are Milena Gaidarska, who assists clients with the planning, design and completion of construction projects and with obtaining all the necessary licences from the relevant state authorities, and Atanas Valov, who specialises in commercial real estate. The firm advised on the largest and most complex retail transaction on the market so far: the sale of 100% of the equity interest in the biggest shopping centre in the country - the Paradise Center - for €255m. The team also advised Arteks Engineering on a high-value residential development of approximately 30,000 square metres in one of the most prestigious neighbourhoods in Sofia.
TMT Tier 2
Penkov, Markov & Partners fields a team of ‘ great specialists in their fields’, which includes group head Nikolay Cvetanov and highly regarded senior partner Vladimir Penkov; Cvetanov also leads the firm's personal data protection practice. The department's client roster include Uber, which the team advised on its software platform's compliance with local e-commerce regulatory requirements; and V Mobile, which it assisted with the development of a new piece of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Svetoslav Dimitrov left to establish his own company.
Banking, finance and capital markets Tier 3
Penkov, Markov & Partners covers multiple regulatory issues on the banking side, including establishment and licensing, EU passporting and anti-money laundering, as well as handling bank M&As, spinoffs and insolvency procedures. Key individuals in the team are co-heads Vladimir Penkov and Ivan Markov, who advises on investment financing, and Nikolay Cvetanov, who specialises in capital markets. Milena Gaidarska advised Arteks Engineering on the financing of a project and the structuring of collateral.
Dispute resolution Tier 3
Penkov, Markov & Partners covers commercial litigation as well as construction, employment, public procurement and tax disputes, including those with cross-border aspects, and international arbitration proceedings. The ‘focused and dedicated’ team is ‘extremely diversified, with experts in almost every legal field’ and takes ‘a personal approach’. Chairman Vladimir Penkov ’does not just build working relationships but has real synergy with everyone involved with him’; team head Atanas Valov was recently promoted to associated partner; and Yura Mincheva is also recommended. In a recent highlight, Penkov and Milena Gaidarska acted for Glorient Investment in a complex and high-value case against Technomarket regarding the payment of overdue rents and handover of unlawfully retained commercial stores and warehouse facilities.
Energy and natural resources Tier 3
Penkov, Markov & Partners advises companies, NGOs and public authorities on M&A deals in the energy sector, and on all aspects of electricity trading. The practice is led by Vladimir Penkov, Roman Stoyanov, who represents power generation and distribution companies, as well as financial institutions and investment firms active in this area, and Ivan Markov. The team advised electricity distribution and grid-operating company CEZ Group on the cross-border sale of its subsidiaries in Bulgaria, which was the largest M&A transaction in the energy sector in the last decade.
Penkov, Markov & Partners > Firm Profile
Established in 1990 Penkov, Markov & Partners is one of the first law firms in Bulgaria having nowadays the biggest and most significant client portfolios and being respected both domestically and internationally. The firm currently has approximately 40 partners and associated members, several external legal consultants, 12 trainees, 12 assistants and staff members.
The firm publishes its own newspaper PMP Legal News, circulation 2200 (published in Bulgarian, English and German languages) which is also available on its website.
Since 1996 PM&P is the exclusive member firm for the jurisdiction of Bulgaria of Lex Mundi – the world’s leading association of independent law firms.
PM&P is a member of Lex Mundi and FLI Net and is the first law firm in Bulgaria certified under the ISO 9001:2000 and later recertified under ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 9001:2015 standards by Bureau Veritas Certification.
For their professionalism the experts from PM&P are frequently engaged not only in legal advice and procedural representation but also in the legislative process (e.g. the Commercial Register Act and the New Renewable Energy Sources Act, as well as competition regulations).
In 2019 PM&P was awarded Superbrand of the year award for a fourth time (2007, 2015, 2017) as recognition for exceptional reputation of the trademark Penkov, Markov & Partners among its current and potential clients, partners and investors.
Main Contacts
| Department | Name | Telephone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial and company | Vladimir Penkov | ||
| Mergers and acquisitions | Vladimir Penkov | ||
| Mergers and acquisitions | Ivan Markov | ||
| Litigation and arbitration | Vladimir Penkov | ||
| Litigation and arbitration | Atanas Valov | ||
| Public procurement | Milena Gaidarska | ||
| Taxation | Radost Georgieva | ||
| Labour | Radost Georgieva | ||
| Labour | Maria Pashalieva | ||
| Real estate and project development | Milena Gaidarska | ||
| Real estate and project development | Atanas Valov | ||
| IT, media and telecommunications | Nikolay Cvetanov | ||
| Competition and antitrust | Smilena Hrusanova | ||
| Insolvency and bankruptcy | Ivan Markov | ||
| Banking, finance and insurance | Vladimir Penkov | ||
| Banking, finance and insurance | Ivan Markov | ||
| Banking, finance and insurance | Nikolay Cvetanov | ||
| Concessions | Vladimir Penkov | ||
| Concessions | Ivan Markov | ||
| Energy, RES and natural resources | Roman Stoyanov | ||
| Energy, RES and natural resources | Boris Lazarov | ||
| Intellectual property and trade marks | Vladimir Penkov | ||
| Customs | Roman Stoyanov | ||
| Pharmaceuticals | Roman Stoyanov | ||
| Immigration | Maria Pashalieva | ||
| Immigration | Vyara Tomova | ||
| Commercial and company | Nikolay Cvetanov | ||
| Consumer protection | Nikolay Cvetanov |
Lawyer Profiles
| Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
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Ms Ekaterina Andonova | View Profile | |
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Mr Asen Apostolov | View Profile | |
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Mr Nikolay Cvetanov | View Profile | |
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Martin Dimitrov | View Profile | |
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Mrs Milena Gaidarska | View Profile | |
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Ms Lora Georgieva | View Profile | |
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Ms Radost Georgieva | View Profile | |
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Ms Smilena Hrusanova | View Profile | |
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Ms Ana Krusteva | View Profile | |
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Mr Koycho Marinov | View Profile | |
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Mr Ivan Markov | View Profile | |
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Ivo Nickolchev | View Profile | |
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Ms Krasina Panova | View Profile | |
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Ms Maria Pashalieva | View Profile | |
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Mr Vladimir Penkov | View Profile | |
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Mr Lachezar Raichev | View Profile | |
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Mr Vencislav Semkov | View Profile | |
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Mr Roman Stoyanov | View Profile | |
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Boris Strijlev | View Profile | |
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Ms Ralitsa Tihova | View Profile | |
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Pavel Tsanov | View Profile | |
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Mr Plamen Valkanov | View Profile | |
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Mr Atanas Valov | View Profile |