According to rivals, Aristodemou Loizides Yiolitis' merger with offshore firm Harneys last year has not brought much impact to the market. One rival says: "They became a member of Harney....
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According to rivals, Aristodemou Loizides Yiolitis' merger with offshore firm Harneys last year has not brought much impact to the market. One rival says: "They became a member of Harney. It's a small firm, not a big move." While another one adds: "I'm surprised to see this firm and they're not known at all in Cyprus."
However, from the clients' point of view, the general consensus about Harneys Aristodemou Loizides Yiolitis seems to be more positive, though they also point out that the Cypriot firm's small size might be somewhat prohibitive. "They're a good firm. But it's a small firm, and the companies [involved in bigger transactions] would be too much for them," says one client.
The market suggests that most of the deals are led by the team's lead partner Pavlos Aristodemou. Last year, he advised on the Cypriot law aspects on an $800 million dual currency facility agreement to X5 Retail Group. Elsewhere the team also acted for the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on its $11.5 million equity investment in Facilium Holdings, a Cypriot holding company owning several pharmaceutical entities in Ukraine.
On the financing side, the team advised Songa Offshore in its equity financing. The transaction included a private placement of shares listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange, a cancellation of Songa's total return swap with Nordea Bank Norge and the raising of a total of $85 million.
On top of that, the firm also worked on the cross-border merger of a Cypriot registered entity ITR Investment Partners and a Polish registered company Sonda Spolka Akcyjn. They are part of one of the largest groups in the Polish food and fruit industry.
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