Walkers looks east

(CNS): With the growth in demand for offshore legal services from the Central and Eastern Europe Region (CEER) Walkers said this week that it has launched a new initiative aimed at raising awareness of Walkers’ capabilities to new clients in these expanding markets. The legal firm said it will be growing its capabilities in the CEER in order to focus on the growing number of commercial opportunities emanating from this region. The new initiative will be spearheaded by partner Jack Boldarin who has relocated to Europe in order to offer clients additional support in their time zone.

Boldarin, who is admitted as an attorney in both the Cayman Islands and the BVI is relocating from Walkers’ BVI office where he has headed up the finance and corporate department for the past three years. Boldarin will be based in the Jersey office and will receive support from partners and associates in Walkers’ London as well as Jersey.

"As business in the traditional financial centres such as New York and London has been impacted by the global credit crisis, we have seen more activity in the trading centres like Moscow and elsewhere in Russia and the CIS, particularly where companies are working with the vast natural resources present in that region," Boldarin said. "From the discussions that we have had with our clients and with others in the region, we anticipate an excellent response to this initiative."

Boldarin has received numerous recognitions from the leading legal commentators for his work with Walkersboth in the Cayman Islands and the BVI, with recommendations from the International Financial Law Review and Chambers Global Guide. The PLC Which Lawyer Yearbook ranked him in the top tier of Banking and Finance lawyers in the BVI and the Legal 500 directory said Boldarin was "widely acclaimed as one of the islands’ top practitioners".

With his commercial expertise across transactions and products in the emerging Eastern European economies and Walkers’ reputation as the legal counsel of first choice on complex, multi-jurisdictional transactions, clients in the region can rely on receiving the most relevant, commercially aware advice to best meet their objectives the firm said.

"Companies and financial institutions in the emerging markets have traditionally tended to gravitate towards BVI legal services for their offshore needs and at present we are seeing a significant amount of M&A and joint venture work," Boldarin added. "Often the most suitable solution will involve a combination of BVI and Cayman Islands law or Cayman Islands and Jersey advice. Many of our attorneys are able to advise on the laws of more than one jurisdiction, which results in a more efficient service for our clients."

Recently, Boldarin has advised on a number of major transactions in the CEER, including acting for a large investment bank in relation to a US$155 million joint venture established to invest in the development and construction of a portfolio of shopping malls in the former states of the Soviet Union.

He also acted recently for a leading Russian conglomerate on a US$2 billion bridge facility to be granted by State Development bank Vnesheconombank.

Boldarin has advised the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development with respect to various transactions in Russia and the CIS region, as well as recently acting for a major French bank in connection with a US$1 billion loan facility made in regard to the acquisition of a group of Russian controlled BVI companies.