Banking/Finance

A key focus of our practice is acquisition finance. We advise buyers, sellers, and lenders on the acquisition of companies and business units, as well as on the requisite financing. Our established client base includes leading private equity firms that regularly seek our counsel on financing investments in Germany.

Gleiss Lutz advises banks, companies, and government authorities on all banking supervisory issues. We keep banks informed of their supervisory duties, advise them on banking licensing issues and provide guidance on the acquisition and sale of lending institutions and financial services providers. We draw up and negotiate outsourcing agreements and other contracts that conform with supervision law. We advise foreign banks and companies on licensing requirements for cross-border activities. For companies outside the financial industry, we ascertain whether business models they are planning are subject to licensing requirements and, if so, we develop alternative structures that do not require licenses. Where clients face charges of, for example, violating insider trading rules, market abuse regulations, or money laundering laws, we conduct internal investigations and provide representation before the regulatory authorities. We provide guidance also on the employment- and civil-law consequences of violations, and enforce liability claims against responsible parties.

Gleiss Lutz assists financial institutions, leasing companies, and businesses with the financing of all kinds of assets, including aircraft, individual trains, and entire railway fleets. We structure both sale-and-lease-back and lease-and-lease-back transactions, as well as the acquisition and sale of large leasing portfolios. We offer advice also on securitisation transactions, asset-backed-securities transactions, and factoring transactions.