Sayenko Kharenko's solid banking and finance practice is well established and retains its place in the top tier. The firm has developed itself a very strong reputation in Ukrainian transactional matters....
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Sayenko Kharenko's solid banking and finance practice is well established and retains its place in the top tier. The firm has developed itself a very strong reputation in Ukrainian transactional matters. As a local firm it has been highly successful in building international contacts. "Sayenko is always local counsel," one partner says. "Sayenko is very experienced and well connected to foreign clients," another partner says. However, there have been some comments, which suggest that the firm has lost a modicum of market share in the last year. "They are less active but I'm not saying that they are not in tier one," one partner says.
Clients have been in no doubt as to the quality exuded by the firm. "A very professional team; they always tailor products to our needs. There is always commitment," one client says, adding: "I don't use the word excellent but we're very satisfied". Recently promoted to partnership, Nazar Chernyavsky has been very active in the banking and finance front. "Sayenko have a young guy who was recently promoted to partner...his name is Nazar, he is young and recently promoted," one partner says.
The firm has been very active in banking and finance. In the capital markets, the firm advised Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan and VTB Capital on a $2 billion Eurobond placement by the State of Ukraine. This consisted of two sovereign Eurobond issues. This was the first successful placement of Eurobonds by the State of Ukraine since 2007. It is also the state's largest ever sovereign Eurobond issue. Additionally, in finance, Michael Kharenko and Nazar Chernyavsky advised VTB Bank on a $2 billion loan provided to the State of Ukraine. Furthermore, in restructuring, the firm advised Credit Suisse on the $500 million loan restructuring to Ukrtelecom, Ukraine's largest fixed-line telephone operator.
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Well established on the legal landscape, Sayenko Kharenko is the leading domestic M&A firm in Ukraine. In terms of volume of deals, the firm has been easily the most active in the last twelve months....
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Well established on the legal landscape, Sayenko Kharenko is the leading domestic M&A firm in Ukraine. In terms of volume of deals, the firm has been easily the most active in the last twelve months. However, market commentary on the firm has been interesting and diverse. "Sayenko do a lot. They're appropriate [for tier one]," one peer says. "Sayenko work with one of the big magic circle firms, so they're not leading the big transactions," one partner says. "Sayenko should be in tier two. They have a good corporate practice but in M&A generally they mention deals where their role is just to file an application," another partner says. Yet another partner says: "I'm curious about Sayenko. Banking and finance is their thing, I have no idea about M&A." Clients have described the firm as "client focused", "most definitely good value for money" and "definitely responsive".
A look at the firm's deal list adds clarity to the relative uncertainty that surrounds its appraisal. The firm continues to be involved in some of the markets headline grabbing mandates. It was involved in the Ukrainian aspects of the regional big-ticket merger when it advised Unimilk in its €1.5 billion merger with Danone. Moreover, the firm advised Cadbury on Ukrainian competition law matters in relation to Kraft Foods $19 billion acquisition of it. Sayenko Kharenko also advised Ageas on the sale of Fortis Life Insurance Ukraine, Ukraine's sixth largest insurance company, to regional private fund Horizon Capital.
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