The global trend of wealth transfer to women can also be seen in Slovakia. Almost every two in five Slovak women (38%) manage their own property independently. In addition, more than one in three Slovak women (34%) invest to have enough money for their own goals and dreams. Compared to men, female investors are more likely to go for safe bets, but this changes with age and experience. These are the findings from a survey conducted as part of the NextŽeny (NextWomen) project by HAVEL & PARTNERS, a law firm, ONE FAMILY OFFICE, RSM, and VISA in cooperation with Ipsos, a market research firm.
Women control one third of the world’s wealth, increasing the value of their assets at a significantly faster rate in recent years than before. In Europe, according to McKinsey data, assets controlled by women grew from $4.6 trillion in 2018 to $6.6 trillion in 2023, expanding from 32 percent to 38 percent of total EU assets under management (AUM). McKinsey also predicts that in the EU, female-controlled assets will reach $11.4 trillion, 47% of all EU assets, by 2030.
Women are steadily strengthening their socio-economic position in society, primarily because they are becoming more emancipated and economically active. They are educating themselves, they are increasingly taking up senior positions, and the number of female entrepreneurs and investors is increasing. Furthermore, according to official figures, women live longer than men, and according to the 2023 Family Behaviour Report of the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic, women marry men that are 3 to 5 years older in 41% of cases, and in 22% of cases even 6 or more years, which means that women more often inherit property from men.
“We believe that the transfer of wealth to women is part of property transfer from builders to managers, a broader and well-known phenomenon in the West. While entrepreneurs have built highly successful businesses and expanded their wealth enormously as their firms have grown, their successors, many of whom will be women, will seek to maintain and to successfully manage the wealth to ensure that its yields provide for their expanding families in the long term. Strategic, professionalised management of these assets will play a key role,” says Jaroslav Havel, Managing Partner of HAVEL & PARTNERS and ONE FAMILY OFFICE.
As a result of social, economic, demographic, and cultural factors, women are increasingly able to build up a large fortune on their own. The NextŽeny survey conducted in Slovakia has now shown that Slovak women are also emancipated when it comes to managing their own property. Almost every two in five (38%) Slovak women have reported that they handle their own assets and financial affairs. “The highest proportion of female investors who manage their own wealth is among women aged 18 to 34. Open to online investing, often single or at early stages of a relationship, they are used to handling their own finances while studying or shortly after. A strong digital skillset and a greater willingness to try riskier products are some of the reasons. This is great news for the future growth in the number of female investors,” says Jana Holíková, Director of Business Relations at ONE FAMILY OFFICE. Not only young but also single or divorced women manage their assets and finances independently. And even more than one in four (26%) married women manage their finances and property on their own.
Compared to Czech women, Slovak women are more independent when deciding about their assets. According to the NextŽeny survey from 2023, only 26% of women in Czechia managed their own property. Czech women, on the other hand, were most likely to decide on family property together with someone else (39%). In the current Slovak survey, about one in three Slovak women (32%) have reported to deal with finances and property together with someone else in their household. “While in Czechia, property management is more often a joint affair, Slovak women learn to work with their own portfolios at a younger age, even when they have a partner,” confirms Jana Holíková.
Slovak men in Slovakia most often take care of the financial and property-related affairs of the entire household on their own (34%), twice as often as women, as only 16% of women decide on the finances and property of the family alone. “For a long time, a strong group of older cohorts, the baby boomers and the next Gen X, lived in a traditional model with a conservative investment approach, with only the man (the founding father) having the final say and often being the only one who knew the family’s financial situation,” says Jana Holíková.
6 out of 10 men and 5 out of 10 women diversify their investment portfolio, making partly conservative investments with lower risk and yield, and partly riskier ones with higher yields. Slovak women are more likely than men (22% vs. 13%) to choose more conservative investments with a lower level of risk. Men, on the other hand, are more likely than women to go for bolder investments, seeking maximum returns even if the risk is higher (19% men vs. 9% women).
“In this respect, Slovak data correspond to figures from abroad, after all. A simple example is the possession of bitcoin, which comes out 6:4 in favour of men. Women, on the other hand, are more likely to be interested in slower-growing but lower-risk investments. When managing their own assets, they look to conservative funds. When managing a business, they are more likely to look around for investment in their industry and don’t feel like having to run elsewhere,” explains Monika Marečková, Managing Partner of RSM, a consultancy.
The risk appetite of women and men in Slovakia also changes with age. Aged between 34 and 44, women invest the most, preferring a combination of conservative and diversified products. Younger women up to the age of 34 are more conservative, taking significantly lower risk than men do. From the age of 44 onwards, women show an increasing willingness to take risks. Over 55, 14% of Slovak women have high-risk investments in their portfolio, which may be related to their longer investment experience.
“Surveys show that in Slovakia, there is a growing group of financially active women who have either established themselves as employees or businesswomen or are heiresses, wishing to make their own decisions, educate themselves and follow trends. This generation is also naturally more open to risk with the prospect of higher returns,” says Jana Holíková from ONE FAMILY OFFICE. On the other hand, as men grow older, their willingness to take risks decreases. At a younger age, one in three Slovak men have high-risk investments, but after they turn 55, their risky investments fall to as little as 3%.
According to the NextŽeny survey, people in Slovakia most often want to use investments to provide for their old age, protect their assets from depreciation, and to provide for their families. In this regard, the motivation of men and women does not differ much. However, significantly more Slovak women (34%) than Slovak men (20%) invest because they want to have enough money to pursue their goals and be independent in acquiring what they want. “Wealth management as such is not only about finances, but also about identity. Slovak women invest to become independent and gain the ability to shape their future. This also includes the need to indulge in things they desire without having to ask their spouse/partner/father for money,” says Jana Holíková. On the other hand, men are more likely to invest as a hobby and to do so for personal satisfaction.
In line with the fact that Slovaks want to secure their finances for their old age, the vast majority use retirement savings schemes (77%). Women prefer liquidity, with more than three in four leaving excess funds in a current account and 71% choosing a savings account. The majority of Slovak investors still base their asset portfolios on real estate. More than one in two women and two in three men save their money in this traditionally popular segment. Real estate is seen as a promising investment for the future by 73% of female and 68% of male investors.
Men most often get their investment information from investment and news websites (59%). Women, on the other hand, rely more on personal contact: over half of them (54%) regularly receive information from a banker or financial adviser.
The younger generation aged below 34 use podcasts and videos as the main source of content (54%). More affluent investors with capital exceeding EUR 830,000 prefer more traditional, structured content: reputable financial portals and print publications. In a nutshell, the broader the portfolio and experience, the greater the willingness to read long analyses; the lower the age, the more “streamed” know‑how.
However, digital tools play a key role both in gathering information and in managing the finances. “Digital banking has become a common part of the financial life of most Slovaks – up to 66% of them use it on a regular basis. Interestingly, around one in five male and female investors (22%) actively manage their investments through digital banking. These results clearly indicate that confidence in digital finance solutions is growing,” said Ľubica Gubová, Visa Country Manager for Slovakia.
Death and inheritance are major life milestones, marking a one-off transfer of a significant amount of wealth. Businesses are increasingly taken over by women as the new-generation successors. This was also confirmed in Slovakia by the NextŽeny survey in 2022. An analysis of a sample of the 10 largest Slovak family-owned businesses conducted in 2022 showed that 90% of the owners were men. 80% of the business owners were already over 60 years old, and even a fifth of the total number of owners were octogenarians. This means that for most of these entrepreneurs in Slovakia, succession is a very important topic. In addition, analysing property and family relationships, the study found that if these family-owned firms were to be passed by inheritance under the Slovak laws, the majority of the assets, namely 65%, would pass into the hands of women. Only 20% of assets would remain male-controlled.
Therefore, sudden events and death fundamentally affect the distribution of family assets. That is why the current NextŽeny survey in Slovakia has looked at how prepared people are for these situations.
In the case of such an unexpected event, everyone in two people have a clear or at least a partial plan for their or the family’s assets. Slovak men and women have quite a similar approach. One in four have written down and keep the rules in one place, while 28% have some rules, but do not keep them neatly in one place. 9% of men and 4% of women have planned for these events as part of the family office.
At times of crisis, Slovaks rely mainly on their family: 68% believe that in an unexpected event, a loved one would be able to manage the family assets. Around six in ten people have clarified with their family what is going to happen with their finances or business (61%) and a similar proportion know how their children and partner will be provided for (61%); the older they are (45+), the more certain their plans are for such events. Only about a third of people would entrust asset management to professionals.
On the other hand, the survey has also showed that everyone in two people have no plans for the future of their property in the case of a sudden event. What is more, half of these people don’t even know whether they will prepare any rules, or they don’t want to devise them at all. Women (57%) were more likely than men (36%) to give a negative answer.
“Half of people have not thought at all about the future of their assets in the case of a sudden event, and women are even more likely to postpone the issue; yet these situations pose one of the greatest risks to the stability of family wealth. In the absence of a last will or clear rules, assets are divided according to statutory law, which often leads to fragmentation and disputes. Trusts and endowment funds are therefore gaining in importance because they can protect assets and ensure that they are managed according to the true will of the owner,” says Štěpán Štarha, Partner at HAVEL & PARTNERS.
The survey involved 295 respondents among Slovakia’s active investors, of which 51% were women and 49% were men of all age groups. The survey was conducted, the data collected and evaluated by Ipsos, a market research firm. The data was collected between 26 June and 26 July 2025 using the CAWI method. Clients and business partners of HAVEL & PARTNERS and RSM SK responded using the Populacia.sk online panel. For each completed questionnaire, HAVEL & PARTNERS and RSM SK is going to contribute EUR 3 to Foundation for Children of Slovakia, a non-profit organisation.
HAVEL & PARTNERS provided comprehensive legal advice to the National Development Bank in drafting model loan documentation under the Affordable Rental Housing programme.
The project was attended to by partner Filip Čabart, senior associate Tomáš Mach, and junior associate Lukáš Janečka. In drafting the model documentation, it was necessary to take into account the requirements for co-financing the entire programme with EU funds and the involvement of senior lenders in financing individual projects. Thanks to the HAVEL & PARTNERS team’s expertise in banking, financing and state aid, the team supported the National Development Bank in setting up a legal framework compliant with all regulatory and practical requirements.
The Affordable Rental Housing programme, as part of the Czech Republic’s National Recovery Plan, aims to encourage the construction and reconstruction of apartments in order to increase the availability of rental housing. A total of CZK 2.25 billion has been allocated for the programme, implemented by the National Development Bank in cooperation with the Ministry for Regional Development.
Authors: Kateřina Slavíková, Martina Rievajová, Diana Gregová
In recent years, the issue of dual quality of food has been a frequently discussed topic, capturing the attention of not only consumers and the media but also European institutions. As of 1 July 2024, Slovakia has enforced a strict prohibition of the marketing of dual quality of goods, including food products. In recent months, supervisory authorities have started conducting initial inspections under the new legislation. In contrast, the State Agricultural and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI) (the “Czech food authority”) has been conducting similar inspections for years. Recently, the Czech food authority published updated information on this issue based on previous inspections. What legislative change initiated the control of dual quality of food products in Slovakia? What approaches do the respective countries take towards inspections? And what are the implications for manufacturers and consumers?
PROHIBITION OF DUAL QUALITY DIRECTLY HAS ITS LEGAL DEFINITION
In Slovakia, it has long been problematic to penalise dual quality of goods. In particular, supervisory authorities lacked explicit legal support to effectively monitor and penalise dual quality of goods.
However, as of 1 July 2024, new consumer regulation came into effect (of which we informed HERE), introducing, among other things, a new unfair commercial practice. Under this regulation, the trader engages in a deceptive practice if:
• they present goods as identical to those marketed in another EU member state, while
• these goods have different properties or composition.
The new regulation also specifies that the aforementioned rule is not universally applicable and includes certain exemptions, namely:
• The difference must be substantial. It is not enough for the assessed goods to have a different composition; the difference must be significant. Therefore, the substitution of a marginal ingredient of food should not immediately be considered a prohibited practice;
• Even a substantial difference can be justified. If the goods differ in a significant component or property, the trader can justify this difference with objective and legitimate factors. Such factors include differences arising from local legal requirements (e.g., a specific amount of fruit juice required for a product to be called fruit nectar).
However, the new regulation does not introduce special rules for dual quality of food products. Therefore, their potential dual quality is assessed solely under general consumer regulation.
An interesting aspect of the new Slovak regulation is that it explicitly considers only the marketing of goods with prohibited dual quality characteristics as an unfair practice. This contrasts with the Czech regulation, which prohibits the placement of food products that violate this rule as such. Given the recent implementation of the Slovak regulation, it is uncertain how supervisory authorities will deal with this seemingly unintended narrowing of the prohibited practice.
If the prohibition is violated, the trader will face penalties from the supervisory authority as well as potential claims from consumers.
In such cases, the supervisory authority may impose the trader a fine of up to EUR 200,000.
Additionally, consumers may demand contract withdrawal, the right to remedy, and compensation for damage.
In contrast to the activities of the SZPI, in Slovakia the regional bodies of the Slovak Food Authority[1] are only now starting to carry out their first inspections, and the eventual results of the inspections were not publicly known at the time of preparing this article.
However, it is certain that the Slovak food authority intends to conduct them. This is evidenced by an announcement published on the Slovak food authority’s website, urging consumers to participate in identifying dual quality and to report any suspected differences in quality via a form.
Given that the Slovak Food Authority[2] has issued only one methodological guideline for inspections (while the Czech food authority already has the 5th version of its methodology guideline available HERE), which primarily refers to general EU recommendations, it is uncertain how the inspections will be conducted.
The guideline suggests that when assessing this unfair commercial practice, the key factors will be:
• whether the differences between identically labelled goods are clearly recognizable to consumers;
• whether consumers have genuine access to essential information about the differences;
• how the trader justifies the differences.
Therefore, it is crucial to be prepared for inspections and to consider the prevention of misleading food labelling when designing packaging, labelling, or marketing food products.
HOW ARE SUSPECT PRODUCTS IDENTIFIED?
Since the prohibition of dual quality of food came into effect in the Czech Republic in 2021 (of which we informed HERE) the Czech food authority conducted extensive monitoring across the country and other EU member states until 2023. The aim of these inspections was to identify products that might violate the dual quality prohibition. The selection included approximately 150 food samples from various categories, ranging from dairy products and confectionery to durable products from both well-known and private brands.
During the monitoring, inspectors evaluated several aspects, such as packaging appearance, differences in composition, sensory properties, and how consumers were informed about any differences.
The results of these analyses served as the basis for subsequent official inspections.
WHAT IS THE STATE OF OFFICIAL INSPECTIONS?
Based on the monitoring results and consumer reports, eight inspections have been initiated since 2022, focusing on significant differences in the composition or properties of food products marketed in the Czech Republic compared to reference products from other EU member states.
As of April 2024, a violation of the dual quality prohibition was confirmed in one case only. This involved differences in the vegetable oils used (the product from Germany and Austria contained sunflower oil, while the Czech sample contained palm oil).
Over the last three years, the issue of dual quality of food has moved forward significantly. The key trends are:
Based on the overview of the situation in both countries, it is clear that the topic of dual quality of food is highly relevant. It is essential to be prepared for potential inspections and, if possible, to adopt preventive measures.
At HAVEL & PARTNERS, we are ready to assist you with assessing appropriate food labelling, proper communication about food quality, and provide swift, targeted assistance in the case of inspections Feel free to contact us!
[1] State Veterinary and Food Administration of the Slovak Republic.
[2] State Veterinary and Food Administration of the Slovak Republic.
We wish you a joyful and peaceful Christmas spent with your loved ones. May the year 2025 bring you and your family good health, contentment, success, and fulfilled dreams. We sincerely appreciate your trust, and look forward to our continued cooperation.
We are proud to announce our fresh contribution to the Merger Control 2024 global practice guide, a wide-ranging publication covering merger control regimes in multiple jurisdictions worldwide.
Among other leading law firms, our team lead by Robert Neruda together with Lenka Štiková Gachová has prepared a section of merger control in the Czech Republic. We provide a detailed analysis of the fundamental aspects of the domestic merger control regime, ensuring our readers obtain a comprehensive understanding of the regulatory framework.
In the Trends and Development section, we dive deep to the proposed New Competition Tool by the CCA, including the January 2024 Initiative which left many competition lawyers scratching their heads.
We invite you to read our contribution within the Merger Control 2024 global practice guide available here and Trends and Developments available here.
As in previous years, the beginning of summer at HAVEL & PARTNERS is associated with a wave of internal promotions, which is record-breaking this year. Jiří Kunášek becomes a new equity partner with effect from 1 July, Veronika Bočanová and Ivan Houfek are promoted to the position of partner. Additional 25 attorneys are moving to more senior positions.
“Midway through this year, we are promoting a 28 lawyers internally. All of them have demonstrated that they have excellent skills in dealing with the specific needs of clients, including in the context of their business, which we see as a key factor in the firm,” says managing partner Jaroslav Havel of the personnel changes. “Our firm has been growing continuously in terms of staff since its establishment, which is why the number of colleagues who aspire to senior or outright managerial positions thanks to their high work commitment, top expertise in the areas of law and tax, and strong pro-client approach is growing every year,” he said.
Jiří Kunášek, who has already been a key member of the management team, is a new equity partner of the firm as of July. In his practice, he focuses primarily on commercial and corporate law, particularly in the area of corporate dispute resolution, general meetings, corporate transformations and holding structures. He co-leads the inheritance law practice group. Jiří offers private clients comprehensive legal advice related to the protection and management of personal and family wealth, private assets, and intergenerational transfer of capital. He represents clients in large and complex inheritance disputes and their settlement. Last but not least, he also focuses on financial law and capital markets and provides companies with comprehensive advice on IPOs.
Veronika Bočanová, a leading expert in family law, becomes a new partner at HAVEL & PARTNERS. She co-leads the family law team and has more than 20 years of experience in this field. She offers comprehensive legal services in relation to marriage and parenthood. She specialises in setting up the conditions of child custody arrangements, dealing with child support issues, matrimonial property law, administration of the property of minor children, and legal representation in custody or divorce proceedings and matrimonial property settlement disputes.
Ivan Houfek, who has long specialised in complex dispute resolution, litigation and arbitration, has become a partner at HAVEL & PARTNERS. He has advised a number of Czech and international clients on litigation matters in the automotive, telecommunications, energy, metallurgy, construction, transport and media sectors. He also deals with contract law and related disputes, contractual and tort liability, real estate law and protection of reputation. Ivan also provides legal advice on dispute resolution to private clients and churches.
Additional 25 attorneys are moving to senior positions as of July. Roman Světnický and Renáta Šínová have been promoted to the position of counsel. Róbert Gašparovič, Zuzana Hájková, Tomáš Havelka, Mária Kopecká, Pavlína Petráčková, Dana Prudíková, Radek Riedl, Ivo Skolil and Pavel Zahradníček have been promoted to the position of managing associates. Finally, Kateřina Bárová, Vladislav Bernard, Jakub Dozbaba, Hana Erbsová, Marta Fantová Argalášová, Barbara Fikarová, Denisa Fuchsová, David Hauser, Kateřina Kabátová, Lenka Ostró, Petra Joanna Pipková, Martin Rott, Dalibor Slavík and Klára Šléglová have been promoted to the position of senior associates.
Our litigation team at HAVEL & PARTNERS has prepared a translation into English of the Czech Act on Class Actions (on Civil Class Proceedings).
The Act was officially published 24 June 2024 in the Czech language which is the only binding version. Please note that the below text is an unofficial and a working translation for discussion only. The Act entered into force on 1 July 2024.
HAVEL & PARTNERS, the largest independent law firm in Central Europe, has again achieved excellent economic results for the previous year. The firm’s total turnover in 2023 was CZK 1,183 million. Revenue from net legal and tax services in the Czech Republic and Slovakia grew by 16.4%. Profit grew at a similarly fast double-digit pace. Based on preliminary results, the turnover of the entire group, which also includes the Cash Collectors collection agency and other specialised services, exceeded CZK 1,500 million.
The strongly positive trend has been boosted in particular by the economic performance of the firm’s practice groups dedicated to venture capital, technology law and public procurement. Besides, practice groups handling banking and finance, restructuring and insolvency, and dispute resolution have grown as well. Last year, legal and tax services for private clients were in extraordinary demand, including in particular advice related to professional management, protection and administration of assets. This also entails a significant expansion of the portfolio of such services in the form of the establishment of ONE FAMILY OFFICE, a multi-family office offering comprehensive services for high-net-worth clients.
“Once again, last year brought many changes, uncertainties and challenges from an economic perspective, to which we had to respond quickly and effectively,” said Jaroslav Havel, managing partner. “These aspects have a direct impact on the business, while our task has been and will continue to be to focus fully on our clients’ current needs and their nuances. This is the only way we can achieve high economic figures,” he added.
The success of HAVEL & PARTNERS and the high standard of the firm’s services are further underlined by the numerous awards it has won, including the most prestigious domestic titles of the Law Firm of the Year 2023 for local law firm and Law Firm of the Year 2023 for the best client services. Last year, the firm also ranked first in the Slovak Law Firm of the Year competition as the best international law firm. With a total of more than fifty awards in the Czech and Slovak competitions, HAVEL & PARTNERS is the most successful and comprehensive law firm in the Czech Republic.
In the 16th year of the Law Firm of the Year Awards in Czechia, HAVEL & PARTNERS, the largest Czech-Slovak law firm, has again won the Best Domestic Law Firm award and become the most popular law firm among clients. HAVEL & PARTNERS has received these two awards for the fourth consecutive year. The firm’s specialised teams have also won the Asset Management, Development and Real Estate Projects, and Health Law categories.
“After the previous covid years and the last year affected by the war in Ukraine, 2023 continued to require our full attention and focus on client needs, especially related to the economic changes that have had a major impact on many business sectors. We therefore appreciate winning the Law Firm of the Year awards and believe that these excellent results reflect our team’s strong efforts and excellent professionalism,” says Jaroslav Havel, managing partner of the firm. “Together, we have proven that hard work, integrity, and uncompromising quality are the keys to success, for which I thank all my colleagues. I would also like to thank all our clients for their long-term trust, which continues to commit us to work on further improving and expanding our legal, tax, and advisory services and to remain a reliable partner to them, whatever new challenges the present and future may bring,” says Jaroslav Havel.
The firm’s excellent results in Czechia follow its victory in this year’s Law Firm of the Year ranking in Slovakia, where it received the top award in the International Law Firm category.
In addition to the Best Domestic Law Firm and Best Client Service awards in Czechia’s Law Firm of the Year ranking, the specialist private client services team of HAVEL & PARTNERS has now won the Asset Management category. This is the first time that an award has been presented in this category. The firm’s team handles the private and asset matters of more than 250 prominent clients and their families. They are one third of the wealthiest Czechs and Slovaks and the most important Czech and Slovak businesspersons and investors, including many successful women. Private clients are looked after by a stable team of 10 partners and a total of 45 experienced lawyers and tax experts. The law firm is currently expanding its portfolio of services with a new multi-family office called ONE FAMILY OFFICE, which will offer first-class services in asset protection, management, and administration.
“We have many years of experience in working for private clients. Established on the market as the first of its kind, our specialised team has been operating since 2008. We have implemented hundreds of family holdings and holding structures in Czechia and Slovakia, as well as dozens of private foundation and trust solutions. Together with other partners, we have managed to build a successful firm. Thanks to this personal experience, we can offer our clients our management and investment know-how as well as our excellent advisory services,” says David Neveselý, the partner responsible for leading the private client team.
After last year’s victory in the Development and Real Estate Projects category, the HAVEL & PARTNERS team has won this award again. Its 30+ lawyers, including 8 partners, specialise in construction and real estate law. “We annually work on 20 to 30 real estate transactions, which are among the largest on the market. However, this year was very specific as the real estate market saw fewer large acquisition transactions. This has made us more focused on providing legal services in building permitting, public law, legislation, and modernisation of building regulations, and on assisting clients, their investments, and projects to be protected against economic fluctuations. At the same time, we help clients find ways to combine innovation with sustainability and meet both the current market demands and the requirements of stricter environmental standards,” says partner Lukáš Syrový on the developments in the real estate market.
The HAVEL & PARTNERS team has also won the Health Law category. The firm was awarded in this area in 2021 and won the same category in this year’s Slovak Law Firm of the Year. The firm has been focusing on the pharmaceutical and life sciences sector and its regulation since 2009. “Our team of more than 13 lawyers specialised in pharmaceutical and health law is one of the most experienced and largest in Czechia and Slovakia. We provide a broad portfolio of services to pharmaceutical and healthcare clients, biotechnology companies, telemedicine startups and others who require advice on the related regulation and business opportunities,” says Kateřina Slavíková, a partner who co-leads the specialised health law team.
In 17 practice categories, the firm has also been ranked among the top tier firms. In terms of the number of nominations and titles as well as the results in all years of the Law Firm of the Year ranking, HAVEL & PARTNERS remains the most successful and most comprehensive law firm in Czechia.
Organised by EPRAVO.CZ under the auspices of the Ministry of Justice and the Czech Bar Association, a gala evening to celebrate the Law Firm of the Year award ceremony took place in Prague’s Žofín on Monday, 6 November.
The specialised M&A, banking and finance teams of HAVEL & PARTNERS provided comprehensive legal advice to Turkish company TURK Electronic Para on the acquisition of Czech fintech start-up Twisto Payments. The seller was Australian firm Zip.
The financial services provider Twisto has introduced the first Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) payment system in the Czech Republic. Besides deferred payments, it also allows customers to make purchases in instalments in its partner online stores. The innovative fintech start-up was acquired by Australian firm Zip in 2021 which has now sold it as part of a series of divestments of its European entities.
The legal advice to the buyer was managed by partner Jan Koval, senior associate Josef Bouchal and junior associates Ján Mozoľ and Jan Skalný for mergers and acquisitions, and advice from the perspective of financial regulation was provided by managing associate Martin Stančík and related competition aspects were considered by associate Martin Rott.
Three years ago, HAVEL & PARTNERS’ experts also advised venture capital firm Elevator Ventures, which originally invested in fast-growing start-up Twisto in the Series C funding round.
HAVEL & PARTNERS’ specialists provided comprehensive legal advice to the investment group Czechoslovak Capital Partners (CSCP) on the acquisition of five properties in the historic centre of Hradec Králové.
The investment was made in the form of a share deal. The expert team led by senior associate Tomáš Navrátil and legal expert Ondřej Falta provided transaction advisory services including due diligence and preparation of contractual documentation.
The investment group Czechoslovak Capital Partners (CSCP) was formed by transformation from the qualified investor fund Šestý uzavřený investiční fond, a.s. This fund was established in 2012 pursuant to Act No. 240/2013 Sb., on Investment Companies and Investment Funds, as amended. The fund has been active in the investment market since 2012 and has gained extensive experience across the investment spectrum. Since its establishment, CSCP Group has invested more than CZK 3 billion.
HAVEL & PARTNERS contributed to the Chambers and Partners Merger Control 2023 Global Practice Guide
We are proud to announce our contribution to the Merger Control 2023 global practice guide, a comprehensive resource that delves into merger control regimes spanning multiple jurisdictions worldwide.
Among leading law firms covering other jurisdictions, our team lead by Robert Neruda has prepared a substantive section within the guide, focusing on merger control in the Czech Republic. We provide a detailed analysis of the fundamental aspects of the domestic merger control regime, ensuring our readers obtain a comprehensive understanding of the regulatory framework.
In the Trends and Developments section, we dive deep into the evolving landscape of merger control. Drawing upon our extensive experience, we provide insights into the complexities of the Czech merger control process. We invite you to read our contribution within the Merger Control 2023 guide, available here, the full digital edition of the Global Practice Guide is available here.