A venerable and well-respected firm, Dryllerakis consistently holds its position across the board after a year in which it managed to take on some important mandates in what was clearly a difficult market. "Dryllerakis have a good knowledge and always make a good impression," says a competitor....
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A venerable and well-respected firm, Dryllerakis consistently holds its position across the board after a year in which it managed to take on some important mandates in what was clearly a difficult market. "Dryllerakis have a good knowledge and always make a good impression," says a competitor.
Dryllerakis is very much viewed as a heavyweight in the corporate arena and even though traditional M&A was on the wane there were a number of deals completed, including restructurings. "Dryllerakis are very strong in M&A. They specialise here and have good relations with corporations," says one competitor.
The two standout deals for the firm this year were arguably the two mandates it received from the Greek state. A team led by managing partner John Dryllerakis advised Greece on a study into the restructuring of the entire banking setup. The work was carried out alongside HSBC, Lazard and Deutsche Bank and within the guidelines of the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP), and completed in December 2010.
The other deal of this type was of a more corporate nature, with the same partner heading up an M&A team advising the government on the restructuring procedure of the Athens Urban Transport company and its subsidiaries. This was also done within the MEFP, and was interesting as law drafted by the firm as part of this was actually voted in by the Greek parliament at a later date. This work was finally completed in March 2011.
The M&A team also managed to get involved with high fashion this year, working for Gucci on the fashion house's strategy of setting up an affiliate office within Greece. The deal is a good sign for the market, with a large international company still looking to be involved despite the problems.
The firm's year in project financing reflects their tier three position. There was one substantial deal, in which a team led by John Apsouris, who has now left the firm to join the Hellenic Petroleum Group, advised GDF Suezopposite Piraeus Bank and Heron, in regard to guarantee agreements for the financing of an energy production project worth around €39 million and which should complete successfully in 2011.
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