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2027 Edition
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.
Debevoise & Plimpton
5 practice areas
View profile
Germany
Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson
4 practice areas
View profile
Germany
Arnold & Porter
3 practice areas
View profile
Germany
King & Wood Mallesons
9 practice areas
View profile
Germany
A&O Shearman - Germany View profile
Germany
Hermann
3 practice areas
View profile
Germany
Leonhardt
2 practice areas
View profile
Germany
Magnusson View profile
Germany
Reed Smith View profile
Germany
Rödl & Partner View profile
Germany
Beiten Burkhardt
1 practice area
View profile
Germany
Hasch & Partner View profile
Germany
Brehm & v Moers View profile
Germany
Brödermann & Jahn View profile
Germany
WilmerHale View profile
Germany
ZIRNGIBL View profile
Germany
Squire Patton Boggs
1 practice area
View profile
Germany
Baum Financial Services Law Team View profile
Germany
BBORS Kreuznacht View profile
Germany
Becker Büttner Held View profile
Germany
756 results756 results
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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
CARIAD SE - M&A
2022-12-01
Dentons
Germany
M&A
Arndt Dobroschke, Arne Karsten, Axel Schlieter, Felix Fürstenberg, Florian Wiesner, Hilke Schmitt, Josef Tahmaz, Julia Heitmann, Laura Appell, Max Purnhagen, Philipp Becker, Sascha Grosjean, Sebastian von Haldenwang, Stefan Dittmer, Thomas Schubert
CARIAD SE
Buyer
AXA Germany - M&A
2022-07-14
Hengeler Mueller
Germany
M&A
Benedikt Mertens, Carina Kampf, Carl-Philipp Eberlein, Christian Möller, Daniel Illhardt, Hendrik Bockenheimer, Jan Adami, Jil Kalender, Kim Weisser, Markus Ernst, Markus Rohrig, Marvin Geisler, Moritz Evertz, Patrick Wilkening, Philipp Braun, Sebastian Heinrichs, Verena Klosterkemper
AXA Germany
Seller
Bayerische Versorgungskammer - M&A
2022-10-04
Clifford Chance
Germany
M&A
Anne Voigt, Birgit Seyfert, Dominik Engl, Dominik Rauchenberger, Geoffrey Scardoni, Katharina Thielges, Katharina Vollmer, Laura-Isabell Dietz, Leonie Gebauer, Magda Pawela-Hausler, Mathias Elspass, Maxime Budzin, Nicole Ruf, Philippe Sadler, Robert Schmidt, Sadan Ramovic, Sascha Nolte, Saskia Myners, Thomas Reischauer
Bayerische Versorgungskammer
Buyer
Neusta international - M&A
2022-06-30
CMS
Germany
M&A
Charlotte von der Heydt-von Kalckreuth, Christoff Soltau, Holger Kraft, Kai Neuhaus, Michael Heim, Moritz Pottek
Neusta international
Seller
MCE Bank GmbH - M&A
2022-10-11
Freshfields
Germany
M&A
Alexander Glos, Gunnar Schuster, Jan Biermann, Nicholas Lutgerath, Patrick Cichy, Valentin Muller
MCE Bank GmbH
Target
Penta - M&A
2022-07-22
Freshfields
Germany
M&A
Aia Eid, Alexander Schramm, Alexander Schwahn, Christel Cacioppo, Daniel Klingenbrunn, Eloi Roche, Guillemette Burgala, Jerome Philippe, Jules Troubat, Kenza El Azzaoui, Lars Meyer, Laura Fruhauf, Marc Perrone, Marius Stein, Markus Benzing, Merit Olthoff, Nicolas Altmeyer, Sebastian Pritzkow, Stephan Reemts, Theresa Ehlen, Tobias Franz
Penta
Target
Qonto - M&A
2022-07-22
Hengeler Mueller
Germany
M&A
Andreas Hoger, Anton Petrov, Christian Schmies, Christian Voigt, Christoph Sielmann, Clemens Hohn, Erasmus Hoffmann, Georg Frowein, Gerrit Tonningsen, Hendrik Bockenheimer, Jens Wenzel, Markus Ernst, Markus Rohrig, Matthias Berberich, Philipp Ersfeld, Sean Tries, Sebastian Heinrichs, Selina Rohr, Tim Wurstlin, Tobias Schilling
Qonto
Buyer
FLYR Inc. - M&A
2022-09-13
Morrison & Foerster
Germany
M&A
Murray Indick
FLYR Inc.
Buyer
Raytheon Technologies Corp. - M&A
2022-12-20
A&O Shearman - Germany
Germany
M&A
Andreas Piepers, Anne Kristin, Clare O'Brien, Florian Harder, Heinrich Stirtz, Holly Smith, Kate Chan, Li Chen, Mehran Massih, Richard Quarshie, Sean Skiffington, Sven Oppermann, Tobias Lammle, Weina Guan, Xiaoqiao Zhang
Raytheon Technologies Corp.
Seller
BayWa AG - M&A
2022-12-19
Watson Farley & Williams
Germany
M&A
Cathleen Haack, Christine Bader, Inès Stefen, Katharina Flehr, Manuel Rustler, Marcus Bechtel, Marina Scharfenberg, Nora Fleischhauer, Robert Nagy, Sebastian Baum, Stefanie Igl, Tarek Fadl, Thomas Wolf, Torsten Wielsch, Verena Scheibe
BayWa AG
Seller
Akzo Nobel NV - M&A
2022-07-08
CMS
Germany
M&A
Aiping Bao, Angela Emmert, Antonia Stoffers, Christian Scherer, Ernst-Markus Schuberth, Jan Rajko, Jonathan Simon, Laura Johnsson, Lennard Lurwer, Mario Brungs, Martin Friedberg, Michael Bauer, Nadine Herda, Nicole Mundhenke, Panpan Tang, Philipp Schonnenbeck, Philippe Heinzke, Roxana Kruse, Spring Zhu, Sven Krause, Ulrike Glueck, Yves Steingruber
Akzo Nobel NV
Buyer
GENUI GmbH - M&A
2022-12-21
Freshfields
Germany
M&A
Christoph Seibt, Justus Anacker
GENUI GmbH
Seller
Raisin Bank AG - M&A
2022-06-24
Freshfields
Germany
M&A
Alexander Glos, Alexander Schwahn, Andrea Strackerjan, Elisabeth Wulf, Frauke Thole, Friederike Sibbe, Hans-Ulrich Kloppel, Holger Hartenfels, Jan Kothe, Judith Romer, Nicholas Lutgerath, Niklas Eckert, Patrick Cichy, Simon Schulte, Theresa Ehlen, Tibor Szigetvari
Raisin Bank AG
Buyer
Colas Rail Ltd. - M&A
2022-08-09
Gleiss Lutz
Germany
M&A
Aaron Waible, Alexander Molle, Andreas Neun, Bianca Moser, Christian Ditté, Jacob von Andreae, Jan Hinrichs, Jana Escaleira, Jan-Alexander Lange, Jochen Tyrolt, Johannes Hertfelder, Johannes Schragle, Konrad Discher, Kristina Müller, Lennart Forster, Lucas Hertneck, Lukas Aberle, Manuel Klar, Marc Ruttloff, Matthias Boglmuller, Matthias Hahn, Maximilian Imre, Muriel Kaufmann, Nikolas Frey, Ocka Stumm, Simone Lindenmuller, Tim Seiter, Tobias Boecken, Ulrike von Paris
Colas Rail Ltd.
Buyer
DWS - M&A
2022-07-22
Hogan Lovells Cadwalader
Germany
M&A
Alexander Stefan Rieger, Alexandra Willm, Anne Schmitt, Camilla Frohlich, Carla Luh, Charlotte Baecker, Fabian Pfuhl, Jennifer Hofmann, Joerg Herwig, Johannes Gross, Joscha Muller, Judith Altenburg, Julian Schmidt, Kathy Chang, Kerstin Neighbour, Marco Weibrecht, Pascal Wagenfuhr, Thomas Frank
DWS
Buyer
Cenntro Electric Group Inc. - M&A
2022-12-13
Jones Day
Germany
M&A
Martin Kock
Cenntro Electric Group Inc.
Buyer
KME Group SpA - M&A
2022-12-13
A&O Shearman - Germany
Germany
M&A
Edward Rarity, Florian Harder, Li Chen, Mathias Stocker, Yang Wang
KME Group SpA
Buyer
thyssenkrupp Automotive Body Solutions - M&A
2022-06-23
CMS
Germany
M&A
Amelie Schafer, Christopher von Lilien-Waldau, David Hudde, Julia Hellberg, Martin Friedberg, Nora Zabel, Ole Weyand
thyssenkrupp Automotive Body Solutions
Buyer
Primer.ai. - M&A
2022-02-16
Gunderson Dettmer
Germany
M&A
Primer.ai.
Buyer
Netlify - M&A
2022-02-01
Gunderson Dettmer
Germany
M&A
Netlify
Buyer
53
of
77
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
1
of
9

Insights editorial only

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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