Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii Partner Gabriela Anton, Gecic Law Counsel Miodrag Jevtic, ACI Partners Head of Banking/Finance Marina Zanoga, Avellum Managing Partner Mykola Stetsenko, NazaIi Tax & Legal Partner Nilay Goker Duran, PRK Partners Senior Attorney-at-Law Norbert Hink, and Schoenherr Bulgaria Local Partner Tsvetan Krumov look at how the financial services landscape in the CEE region has been shifting, as local non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) are gradually gaining ground in an area historically dominated by the banking sector.

Cybersecurity is trending in Czechia again not only because of recent large-scale cyber-attacks targeting important institutions such as hospitals, the Czech public radio, or the national highway directorate (resulting in some of its systems being unavailable for several months) but also due to legislative developments. Specifically, cybersecurity is also making headlines as it is time for many Czech businesses to get ready for the NIS 2 Directive (Directive (EU) 2022/2555 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2022 on measures for a high common level of cybersecurity across the Union).

PRK Partners has advised RWE on the sale of its subsidiary RWE Gas Storage CZ to the CEPS state-owned electric power transmission system operator. EY Law reportedly advised CEPS.

While international private equity players still dominate blockbuster deals in CEE, locals and regional players are gaining more and more ground – especially in terms of volume. PRK Partners Co-Head of Corporate and M&A Practice Group Milan Sivy, Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii Managing Partner Gabriel Zbarcea, and Avellum Managing Partner Mykola Stetsenko provide an in-depth analysis of the PE landscape in the Czech Republic, Romania, and Ukraine.

PRK Partners has advised the shareholders of Czech ticketing portal GoOut on its sale to the Piletilevi Group.

PRK Partners has advised lead co-managers Ceska Sporitelna, Komercni Banka, J&T Banka, and UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia on Czechoslovak Group’s CZK 4.5 billion bond issuance, which contains an option of an increase up to CZK 5 billion.

PRK Partners has advised the Electrostar Group on setting up its operations in the Czech Republic – including the acquisition of an industrial site in the Pilsen Region.

On February 9, 2023, the Committee on Industry, Research, and Energy voted in favor of a revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which is a part of the EU’s new extensive climate and energy legislation known as “Fit for 55”. The main objective of the revised EPBD is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the overall energy consumption of buildings by 2030 with the eventual goal of reaching climate-neutral buildings in the EU by 2050.

Following a tumultuous year marked by the ongoing conflict in the region and rising financing expenses, we reached out to experts across CEE to gain a deeper understanding of the real estate landscape, including key factors driving the industry and the primary obstacles it faces.

On May 24, 2023, PRK Partners announced that Yokohama Rubber’s acquisition of Trelleborg Wheel Systems (reported by CEE Legal Matters on April 13, 2022) had closed.

BPV Braun Partners has advised Creditas company UCED on its investment in the expansion of the Prostejov steam power plant in the Czech Republic. PRK Partners reportedly advised the financing bank.

Governance is primarily covered in the ESRS G1 Business Conduct section of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards framework (ESRS, November 2022 draft). Requirement G1-1 represents one of its six main areas. In this article, we cover the information required for reports under the G1-1 Corporate Culture and Business Conduct requirement.

We are honored and excited to introduce (and extend a big thank you to!) our regional Final Selection Committee of Jurors for the 2022 CEE Deals of the Year awards.

Prague-based Attorneys Tomas Bures and Jan Varecha and Bratislava-based Attorney Eva Hromadkova have been appointed as Associate Partners at PRK Partners.

The acronym ESG has recently become more and more common in business circles. Therefore, we have decided to write up this short article to help you understand what ESG is and what it means for business relationships.

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) took effect on 5 January 2023. This directive amends the Non-Financial Reporting Directive of 2014 (NFRD) and introduces more detailed requirements for non-financial reporting in the area of ESG.

A draft of a preventive restructuring act is being discussed in the Czech legal environment to implement the EU directive on restructuring and insolvency (directive (EU) 2019/1023). The aim of the new legal regulation is to introduce an out-of-court restructuring model with shorter times to improve operations and the balance sheets of debtors in financial difficulties. Different forms of out-of-court restructuring are common and frequently used in many foreign jurisdictions, e.g. arrangements in England and Wales. Unlike insolvencies, in preventive restructuring the court is a “mere” supervisor supported by the restructuring trustee in certain situations.

PRK Partners has successfully represented the interests of a client who completed a gender transition process in a matter regarding the issuance of official documents bearing the applicant's new personal data before the Supreme Administrative Court.