Banking and Finance Law
International financial markets continue to be in the spotlight. It is becoming increasingly important for market participants to react quickly to legal issues in banking and finance law. The main reason for this is new and constantly adapted regulations that have to meet current developments and challenges. In addition, financial structures are dynamically evolving to adapt to technological innovations and regulatory changes.
Schindhelm has extensive experience in the field of banking and finance law, which allows new and complex legal issues to be clarified efficiently. We support you as a market participant in close partnership. We accompany you from the beginning to the completion of a project, often over several years, and support you from project planning and the development of new and innovative financing to the negotiation and drafting of the corresponding contracts.
In addition, we exchange ideas with specialists from our other practice groups in all phases of the consultation. In particular, we work closely with colleagues from tax and corporate law. For cross-border projects, we advise you together with our experts at 26 locations in Germany and abroad and offer you tailor-made solutions from a single source.
Need for advice in banking and finance law
Companies are faced with the challenge of meeting legal and regulatory requirements while achieving their economic goals. Banking law is particularly complex because it is not regulated by a single law, but is determined by a large number of regulations from company law, civil law, tax law and other norms, especially at the European level.
Therefore, companies should seek the support of a lawyer in banking and finance law on an ongoing basis. Typical occasions that require legal advice are:
- Structuring of financing and transactions: Consideration of economic, tax and regulatory aspects, e.g. in real estate financing, project financing and restructuring of all kinds.
- Restructuring of financing: adaptation to new economic situations.
- Disputes regarding financing: representation in court proceedings and arbitration proceedings.
- International transactions: Consideration of different jurisdictions and regulations.
- Regulatory compliance: Compliance with national and international financial regulations, e.g. in the area of anti-money laundering (AML).
Our expertise in banking and finance law
The goal of Schindhelm's highly specialized team is to offer you simple and practice-oriented solutions in the complex field of banking and financing . We advise large and medium-sized companies, international corporations, public institutions as well as national and international banks and funds in all matters of banking and finance law. We are active in various areas of focus and offer tailor-made support for your specific needs.
Three good reasons – What makes us different:
- Your challenges are our daily business. Our lawyers in banking and finance law bundle the full range of skills required to successfully implement your strategic and operational goals.
- We want to understand your business. And we do everything we can to really get to know you. Our goal is to build a long-term partnership and work closely with them – side by side with your management teams.
- Locally rooted, nationally and internationally networked. Our offices are staffed by lawyers who are familiar with the local legal and economic peculiarities and are at home in the respective cultures. As a team, we develop solutions for you that will help you move forward. No matter whether on the national or international stage.
Our areas of expertise in banking and finance law
With our team, we will navigate you through the highly demanding banking and finance law. Our areas of expertise include:
Refers to the financing of a company acquisition by the acquirer. Financing can be provided by own funds (internal financing) or by borrowed capital (external financing).
Refers to the provision of capital for the acquisition (or optimization or expansion) of machinery, real estate or technical equipment for companies.
We have extensive experience in the regulatory field and advise you on all regulatory issues and compliance issues.
The use of derivatives and structured finance helps companies hedge risks and achieve investment objectives.
Before a transaction is made, a comprehensive – including legal – examination of the target company is required in order to meet the due diligence standards under corporate law. A due diligence review serves to analyze risks and also to develop or adapt the transaction structure.
By means of factoring, companies increase their liquidity in the short term by reselling open receivables to factoring companies.
Illegally obtained assets must be prevented. Above all, compliance with the requirements of the European Union is decisive for this.
This form of asset management is intended to manage and increase assets. Open-ended funds allow investors to invest flexibly in a variety of projects and easily liquidate shares, while closed-end funds focus on a few projects and can mean higher return opportunities with longer maturities.
Acquiring, building or renovating a property requires careful planning that takes into account future market conditions.
Laws and regulations must be complied with during every capital markets transaction and all related activities to ensure market transparency, prevent insider trading and comply with financial reporting.
An initial public offering (IPO) refers to the admission of a company's shares to trading on the stock exchange and requires extensive analysis and valuations of the company to determine a share price. Approached correctly, companies have a broad circle of investors and valuable additional financial resources.
Cash pooling is the centralization of liquidity management by combining different payment accounts. This allows corporations to achieve better conditions with banks and optimize their financing costs. Particular attention should be paid to avoiding a prohibited repayment of deposits.
This special form of finance leasing allows companies to make sales and then lease them back from the leasing company. Used correctly, companies can thus free up liquid funds while continuing to use the asset.
Public-private partnership (PPP) and private finance initiative (PFI) projects enable private financing for public services. These models achieve an efficient and cost-effective solution of infrastructure projects by combining private sector resources with public sector requirements.
Is private equity capital that is not raised through the stock exchange. Investors have high earnings opportunities with this, but also take a high risk, which means that the process requires legal advice.
This is a variant of private equity in which capital is invested in a young, innovative company (often in the startup phase). As a risky investment, strategic planning is required.
In this case, assets are sold to a group of private investors, without the public. This form of raising capital requires a high degree of trust between the parties involved.
Structuring project financing requires careful risk analysis and the creation of detailed financing plans so that companies can get the capital for projects from banks and investors.
Companies need legal preparation for conflict resolution – in both judicial and extrajudicial conflict resolution.
While one company acquires control of another, an orderly, transparent and legally compliant process must be ensured.
Contracts between companies as well as other parties must be carefully drafted to minimize legal risks and clearly define the rights and obligations of all parties involved.
References and success stories
We support our clients with expertise and commitment in banking and finance law. Below you will find some of our successful mandates from the recent past.
Schindhelm is advising on the refinancing of an international group of companies by a US consortium of edgers
Schindhelm advised the German-based international group of companies on the conclusion and collateralization of a syndicated loan in the triple-digit million range. To this end, we coordinated with colleagues from various jurisdictions, as collateral for the syndicated loan had to be provided in accordance with the respective law in whose scope of application the objects and receivables to be transferred as collateral were located.
Schindhelm advises medium-sized companies on the financing of an investment project
Schindhelm advises a client in Germany on all questions relating to the financing of a project in the double-digit millions. A particular challenge in this project was the drafting of a collateral pool contract.
Schindhelm advises investment services institute
For many years, Schindhelm has been advising an investment services company on all regulatory issues in connection with necessary licensing procedures, extensions of the licence and all special features arising from the business model of the investment services institution.
Contact and advice
As an experienced law firm with offices in Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hannover und Osnabrück, we offer comprehensive support in capital market transactions, project and acquisition financing, and much more. Trust in our expertise in banking and finance law.
