Founded in 1903, AKD is an international law firm with offices in Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. In The Netherlands the firm operates Amsterdam, Breda, Eindhoven and Rotterdam offices.
Focusses / specialisms
The firm is active in the financial and corporate space and is best recognised for its projects practice.
In banking, the firm works for both lenders and borrowers in matters including refinancings, acquisition financings and regulatory matters.
The corporate team regularly assists buyers and sellers on private and public M&A deals, financial investments, joint ventures and strategic alliances.
The projects team has extensive expertise on PPP projects and is active in a variety of sectors including real estate, healthcare, retail, and construction.
In the restructuring and insolvency area the firm is strong in advising on cross-border insolvencies. The practice works on cases involving companies in distress, as well as recovery cases, for both banks and debtors.
Key clients
Noteworthy client names include Benson Elliot, JPMorgan, PepsiCo, Natixis, Seaway Heavy Lifting, ILFA, Cottonwood, Newion, G2A, Neways, Remia, Telrol, CWS, VolkerWessels, WDP, Philips, Netflix, Zalando, Prologis, Mammoet, Boskalis and Libyan Foreign Bank.
Research period review: 33rd edition (2023/2024)
The firm was actively involved in various aspects of banking, serving as both borrower and lender.
Their engagement encompassed a wide array of lending tasks such as refinancing mandates, acquisition finance, and project/real estate finance.
The firm maintained comprehensive legal support in regulatory financial services, offering assistance on multiple regulatory issues for clients affiliated with industries such as oil and gas, gaming, healthcare, and financial markets.
The M&A team has provided guidance on intricate acquisitions within prominent sectors in the Netherlands, including financial services, technology, construction, pharmaceuticals, and transportation transactions.
The firm consistently delivered comprehensive legal assistance in project-related matters, encompassing major project development initiatives, PFI (Private Finance Initiative) undertakings, and real estate projects. These services catered to clients associated with industries such as oil and gas, gaming, healthcare, social infrastructure, and financial markets.
Within the realm of restructuring and insolvency, the firm engaged in multiple cases of insolvency and corporate rescue, frequently spanning multiple jurisdictions.
The firm hired a new partner Renate Punt-Huizer in the banking team.
Deal highlights: 33rd edition (2023/2024)
Foodmate B.V. €1 billion private sale to William Blair Bidders
Strijp S €3 billion construction and redevelopment in the Netherlands
EdgeConneX, Inc. €1 billion greenfield data development
Bankruptcy of Royal Imtech N.V. and its subsidiaries $4.28 billion sale of assets
Client feedback: 33rd edition (2023/2024)
Asset finance
“They have a solid and well experienced team consisting of lawyers and notaries, supporting the banks/financial institutions as well as us.”
Bank lending
“Proactive, informal, no-nonsense, knowledgeable.”
Banking and finance
“Responsive, diligent and competent.”
“AKD are proactive, thinking with us as client. Especially in cross-border situations, they manage to negotiate points which are common in NL but not per se in the lender's jurisdiction.”
Financial services regulatory
“Quick and to the point.”
Investment funds
“Detailed, timely, organised and friendly.”
“Clear communication; business-orientated advice; excellent understanding of funds business model.”
M&A
“Very good market insight, they are very efficient and pragmatic, they were very good lead counsels and were always on top of everything. They had an all-female team which is very rare in the M&A industry.”
“Nicolas Marchand has extensive experience in all aspects of Luxembourg corporate law, and excels in particular in complex M&A transactional work. He is reactive, well-organised and remains calm even in very stressful situations.”
“Reliable and professional partner.”
“AKD is very responsive, partner-driven, with great cost for value.”
“Multidisciplinary approach. Great team set-up and work. Customer-driven and proactive.”
“Very good negotiation skills and they are very much prepared on the matter (both on legal aspects as well as from a business perspective). Good communicators and very involved, they can enter into the mindset of the entrepreneur. Work to obtain best result and insist on obtaining this.”
“Well-experienced, team players.”
“24/7 availability, creative in solutions, always prepared to assist.”
“AKD really delivered on their promise: we do work together with the client. The transaction concerned a combination of M&A and real estate, and in both areas they showed their great expertise. The team was well-balanced and very responsive. Good price/quality ratio. “
“Strong technically and good reporting.”
“The partner is involved. We got high-level advice.”
PPP/PFI
“High-quality legal; practically applicable advice with a feeling for the business.”
Private equity
“Always available for assistance. Creative and innovative. Know what we want and what our priorities are.”
“They have been extremely helpful and resourceful at every step in the process, with a very positive attitude towards finding a suitable solution to all different obstacles.”
Project development
“Thorough knowledge of law fields concerned, swift response, practical.”
“Professional attitude with out of the box thinking.”
“AKD manage a quick and thorough understanding of the key issues involved and subsequently propose the solutions to these issues. AKD are very sharp and constructive lawyers and a pleasure to work with.”
Restructuring
"AKD has a wide perspective, a great knowledge and feeling of what we need to achieve and is focused on details."
Vincent Bettonville
“Client-orientated, relationship builder, knowledgeable, transparent.”
"Vincent is very responsive, commercial, understands our business and always delivers to deadlines.”
Ben Beune
“Very approachable person, very good knowledge and involved in the business. Eager to learn the industry details and proactive. Good listener and looks for solutions.”
Lennart Crain
“Sound legal and finance knowledge.”
“The lawyer in charge, Lennart Crain, has sound knowledge in both legal and finance.”
Mickey Engel
“Relationship-building, humour, deal-making.”
Niels Hagelstein
“Niels has been on our account for a few years now. Compared to Vincent he brings a new viewpoint to international cross-border transactions. He is knowledgeable and tries to find solutions, albeit after a little push.”
Jeanette Luijten
“She works a lot with Marc Wintgens and is an excellent lawyer: she works very fast and thoroughly.”
Romy Mattens
“Proactive, smart, respects deadlines, service-minded, smart, creative.”
David Molenaar
“Clear advice and commercial.”
Renate Punt-Huizer
“Proactive, smart, creative, keep their promises.”
Valéry Schaap
“Pragmatic, very well organised, pleasure to work with, straightforward approach, friendly.”
Nathalie van Woerkom
“Nathalie is a very good communicator, which comes in handy in M&A transactions/negotiations. She is always available, no matter what time of the day, and seems to be on top of everything. I liked her clear and pragmatic approach and enjoyed working with her.”
“She is a true partner of our business: reliable and professional outstanding.”
“Always prepared to assist, proactive working attitude, good knowledge of our company and our wishes and what we are looking for in our legal adviser.”
“Always available for help 24/7, Nice to work with, creative in solutions and committed to getting the job done.”
“Professional, fast.”
Joyce van den Nouwland
“Extremely prepared, natural authority, calm and clear in her negotiations, good communicator, friendly and likeable person. Very much involved in the business and focused on the result. Very persistent.”
“Pragmatic, skilled, pleasant negotiator, team player.
Ayzo van Eysinga
“Deep knowledge, positive attitude, detail-orientated.”
Eric Vermeulen
“Eric understands our business perfectly and even though he is a tax lawyer, he has a wide perspective and is valuable in other areas.”
Julian Versmissen
“Very good knowledge of industry sector and legal best practices. Delivers adequate solutions.”
“Knows the real estate industry very well, the pitfalls and how to avoid them. Great knowledge of the ins and outs of the transaction at hand, eye for detail. Knows what solutions work in negotiations and achieves them.”
Marc Wintgens
“He knows both the business and our company the best and knows how to translate legal knowledge and experience into legal solutions.”
“Accessibility, swift response, access to network.”
“Professional attitude, out-of-the-box thinking. Strategic approach.”
“Marc Wintgens is a well-established presence in the project development field and an excellent lawyer. For good reasons Marc was the real estate practice head for many years before becoming a board member of AKD.”