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2027 Edition
  • Banking and finance
    38 firms ranked
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  • Capital markets : Debt
    22 firms ranked
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  • Capital markets : Equity
    25 firms ranked
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  • Capital markets : High yield
    11 firms ranked
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  • Capital markets : Structured finance and securitisation
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  • Financial services regulatory
    26 firms ranked
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  • Insolvency
    26 firms ranked
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  • M&A : Large-cap
    24 firms ranked
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  • M&A : Mid-cap
    52 firms ranked
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  • Private equity
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  • Project development
    21 firms ranked
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  • Project finance
    15 firms ranked
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  • Restructuring
    30 firms ranked
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Magic Circle firm Clifford Chance is among the largest law firms in the world, with global operations in 23 countries. It has offices in Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Munich. The firm has a formidable practice across all sectors. Its standout capital markets practice includes Simon Reitz and Axel Wittmann. In a recent highlight the team advised GD Towers on its EUR 7.7 billion refinancing comprising the establishment of a new common terms financing platform and a record EUR 2.5 billion private placement. The project finance team includes highly regarded practitioner Florian Mahler, who advised Nofar Energy on the project financing of its first battery energy storage system in Germany, a deal that was shortlisted for Deal of the Year at the 2026 IFLR Europe Awards. The corporate team, led by Thomas Krecek, advised Helvetia Holding on its planned merger of equals with Baloise Holding, ultimately forming Helvetia Baloise Holding.

Key clients of the firm include GD Towers, Nofar Energy, Deutsche Bank, J.P. Morgan, MTU Aero Engines, Vantage Data Centers, Aeral Bank, Barclays Bank Ireland, Helvetia Holding, Helvetia Holding, and BNP Paribas.

Testimonials
‘We especially appreciate their teamwork approach, availability, and pragmatism.’ (M&A)
Schalast & Partner was established in 1995 and has offices in Frankfurt, Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Stuttgart and is part of the Multilaw network. The firm is experienced in financial services regulation, banking, insurance, and M&A and is often noted for its work in with start-ups, on novel financing products and in the emerging digital finance space. This year, the Banking & Finance department, led by co-managing partner Andreas Walter, advised Raisin Bank on its regulatory assessment of European sustainability and ESG-related legislation and supervisory guidelines included in a regulatory review catalogue. The M&A team, led by managing partner Christoph Schalast, advised Beyond Capital Partner (BCP) on its acquisition of Sanitätshaus blu, requiring the coordination of corporate and real estate law expertise across multiple practice areas. Key M&A clients of the firm include Viessmann Generations Group, Mainova, Beyond Capital Partners, Faber-Castell, and Hannover Finanz. The Banking & Finance department advises DLT, Mondu, Fosun, Wayflyer, Morgan Stanley, and CRX Markets.

Testimonials

“Very active on thought leadership in the financial space and very active in the fintech sector; they are well-versed in working with start-ups and have been successful in areas such as blockchain, distributed ledger technology (DLT) and crypto-currency projects.” (Banking & Finance)

“They have a large team with a lot of dedicated regulatory lawyers and some very talented individuals.” (Financial Services Regulatory)

“Christoph Schalast is highly experienced; excellent rhetoric.”
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom is an American multinational law firm founded in 1948 in New York. It is present in Germany with offices in Frankfurt and Munich. In Banking and Capital Markets, the firm advises on domestic and cross-border transaction, with a focus on structured finance, syndicated lending and debt restructuring, and equity capital markets work. In M&A and private equity, the firm has a strong international focus, advising private equity houses on their inbound buyouts in Germany, as well as pan-European transactions with a strong German component. The team also boasts substantial experience in significant transatlantic transactions involving major US corporates and investors. This year, the Capital Markets and M&A teams, led by Holger Hofmeister and Stephen Hutter, advised CureVac in its all-stock acquisition by BioNTech that valued CureVac at approximately USD 1.25 billion. The Private Equity team, led by Jan Bauer in Frankfurt, advised BlackRock as part of a consortium of investors led by Allianz, in the acquisition of Viridium Group, a transaction that was shortlisted as a Deal of the Year in the 2026 IFLR Europe Awards. Key clients of the firm include BlackRock, CureVac, Paypal, The Middleby Corporation, Qatar Investment Authority, Kulczyk Investments, HSBC, Jefferies, Wells Fargo Bank, Citibank, Hillenbrand, AGRAVIS Raiffeisen, and Energy Infrastructure Partners.
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Deal Highlights
1,539 results1,539 results
Deal Name Deal Date Firm Name Jurisdiction Deal Type Lawyer Names Client Names Client Role
Pony SA Compartment German Auto Loans 2021-1 - Bond Issue
2021-07-01
AKD
Germany
Bond issue
ING Bank
Underwriter
EQT Corp - Bond Issue
2021-05-01
A&O Shearman
Germany
Bond issue
Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs, SEB - Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Nordea Bank Finland Oyj
Underwriter
Federal State of Saxony-Anhalt - Bond Issue
2021-02-01
A&O Shearman
Germany
Bond issue
Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs, Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg - LBBW, Royal Bank of Scotland Group, Commerzbank, HSBC, Citigroup, NORD/LB, Morgan Stanley, UniCredit, DekaBank, DZ Bank
Underwriter
Volkswagen Group - Bond Issue
2021-05-01
A&O Shearman
Germany
Bond issue
Volkswagen Group
Issuer
NORD/LB - Bond Issue
2021-07-01
A&O Shearman
Germany
Bond issue
NORD/LB
Issuer
UniCredit - Bond Issue
2021-07-01
A&O Shearman
Germany
Bond issue
UniCredit
Issuer
Pony SA Compartment German Auto Loans 2021-1 - Bond Issue
2021-07-01
Ashurst Perkins Coie
Germany
Bond issue
Pony SA Compartment German Auto Loans 2021-1
Issuer
RevoCar 2021-1 UG (Haftungsbeschrankt) - Bond Issue
2021-05-01
Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner
Germany
Bond issue
RevoCar 2021-1 UG (Haftungsbeschrankt)
Issuer
Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide - Bond Issue
2021-03-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
BNP Paribas, Bayerische Landesbank, DZ Bank, Commerzbank, Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg - LBBW
Underwriter
Deutsche Bahn Finance GmbH - Bond Issue
2021-05-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Crédit Agricole, Daiwa Securities Group, HSBC
Underwriter
Dekabank - Bond Issue
2021-04-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Commerzbank, DekaBank, Groupe BPCE
Underwriter
HOCHTIEF AG - Bond Issue
2021-04-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
HSBC, Commerzbank, Mizuho Bank, Société Générale
Underwriter
Bayer AG - Bond Issue
2021-01-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Crédit Agricole, Banco Santander, HSBC, Rabobank, Barclays, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, BBVA - Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Standard Chartered Bank, Wells Fargo
Underwriter
Deutsche Bahn Finance GmbH - Bond Issue
2021-07-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Deutsche Bank, SEB - Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB
Underwriter
Hannover Re - Bond Issue
2021-03-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Barclays, Citigroup, Groupe BPCE, ABN AMRO Bank, HSBC
Underwriter
Aareal Bank AG - Bond Issue
2021-02-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Citigroup, Bayerische Landesbank, Société Générale, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, DZ Bank, NORD/LB, BNP Paribas, Commerzbank, Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg - LBBW, UniCredit, DekaBank, Groupe BPCE, Deutsche Bank, Nomura
Underwriter
Aareal Bank AG - Bond Issue
2021-08-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Citigroup, BNP Paribas, DZ Bank, DekaBank, Commerzbank
Underwriter
Amprion GmbH - Bond Issue
2021-09-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
SEB - Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, ING Bank, Commerzbank, UniCredit
Underwriter
Aareal Bank AG - Bond Issue
2021-04-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
Nomura, Royal Bank of Scotland Group, HSBC, Deutsche Bank
Underwriter
DekaBank - Bond Issue
2021-09-01
Clifford Chance
Germany
Bond issue
DekaBank
Underwriter
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By Firm
173 results173 results
Firm Name Jurisdiction Total Deals Deals (Last 12 Months)
A&O Shearman
Germany
20
0
A&O Shearman - Germany
Germany
32
0
Addleshaw Goddard
1
0
AKD
Belgium
2
0
Alexander Koelle
Germany
1
0
AllBright Law Offices
1
0
Alston & Bird
1
0
ALTENBURG
Germany
6
0
Anderson Mori & Tomotsune
Japan
1
0
Arqis
Germany
27
0
Arthur Cox
Ireland
1
0
Ashurst Perkins Coie
Germany
11
0
Baker & Hostetler
1
0
Baker McKenzie
Germany
22
0
BarentsKrans
Netherlands
1
0
Barnes & Thornburg
1
0
Bech-Bruun
Denmark
1
0
Binder Grösswang
Austria
1
0
Bird & Bird
Germany
10
0
Blake Cassels & Graydon
1
0
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From Germany to California, we round up key partner moves across private equity, secondaries, finance and venture capital
From UK private capital to Italian consolidation, tier changes demonstrate a more competitive regional cycle
The 2027 edition recognises 3,524 practices across 24 jurisdictions, with France, Germany and the UK driving much of the growth following the introduction of new tables
Eric Romba explains why digital finance regulation has become a live business priority – and why Fieldfisher is using it as a foundation in Berlin
We round up this week’s top moves in the finance, corporate, M&A and PE practices in the UK, France, the US and Germany
We round up this week’s lateral hires at leading firms across Germany, the US, UK and Brazil
New hires made in regulatory, corporate, M&A and finance practices at leading firms across the US and the UK, while German Hengeler Mueller elected two new managing partners
The finalists for the 28th annual Europe awards have been revealed, with the winners to be announced in London on June 11
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