Banking

Banking

Our banking practice helps our clients to navigate the sector’s complex legal framework, advising them on how to adapt to ever-changing economic, political and regulatory conditions. We have intimate knowledge and experience of the Cyprus banking sector and a wide variety of economic activity, providing services across the full spectrum of banking and financial matters.

Our team is a balanced mix of lawyers with contentious experience and lawyers who specialise in non-contentious work. Through extensive collaboration with the Property, Corporate, Commercial and Regulatory departments, the team’s expertise covers retail and corporate banking activity, large scale and detailed NPL portfolio due diligence, and general transactional, contentious, and non-contentious matters, ranging from debt recovery and day-to-day banking issues to bank resolution and debtor restructuring, as well as the provision of legal opinions to in-house redocumentation projects.

The team provides ongoing legal support to international banks, the majority of Cyprus’s banks, including two systemically important banks, and a significant number of credit acquiring companies licensed by the Central Bank of Cyprus, as well as individual and corporate clients.

Services

  • Advising on loan restructurings (including debt-for-asset swaps and debt-for-equity swaps)
  • Advising on loan originations and drafting and perfecting agreements for related security
  • Advising credit acquiring companies on the acquisition of non-performing loans and company set ups in accordance with applicable law
  • Advising credit acquiring companies on work-out strategies for loan portfolios and bringing legal proceedings where required including enforcement procedures in relation to security
  • Drafting legal opinions on novel/complex matters of Cypriot banking legislation and the regulatory framework affecting financial institutions
  • Drafting complex commercial agreements involving banking institutions as contracting parties
  • Redocumentation projects for banking institutions
  • Providing advice on contentious banking matters and representing clients before the Cypriot courts
  • Advising on various compliance issues and providing guidance on best market practice
  • Advising on Initial Public Offering (IPO) processes for financial institutions
  • Due diligence projects for large corporate groups

Resources

Key contacts

Vasiliki Christoforou

Senior Lawyer

Marina K. Vassiliou

Partner - Head of Banking