Vladimir Sayenko is a partner practicing law since 1994, admitted in Ukraine and in the State of New York (USA). He specializes in mergers & acquisitions, corporate, competition and securities law. He has advised extensively in the financial, energy, oil & gas, real estate and media sectors.
Prior to joining Sayenko Kharenko, Vladimir worked for a leading western law firm operating in Ukraine, where he represented major multinational corporations, financial institutions, and other investors for more than ten years. For a number of years he acted as an advisor to the Ukrainian Parliamentary Committee on the Freedom of Speech and Information. He is also a founding member and former board member of the Ukrainian Bar Association.
Recognition:
- named No. 1 M&A lawyer for Ukraine, among top two in Corporate and Antitrust, and among top three in Energy and Natural Resources law according to Ukrainian Law Firms 2012 compilation by Yuridicheskaya Practika, the leading legal publishing house in Ukraine;
- recognized the “Best M&A Lawyer” for Ukraine by Kyiv Post Best Lawyers research;
- named the “Best Competition Lawyer” in Ukraine by Ukrainian Legal Awards 2007, conducted by Yuridicheskaya Practika Publishing House;
- listed among Top 25 Lawyers in Ukraine by Yuridicheskaya Practika Publishing House;
- ranked among top five Best Top Managers on the Ukrainian legal market, according to the annual research 100 Top Managers of Ukraine published by Economica Publishing House;
- named the leading corporate lawyer for Ukraine by Chambers Global 2012; and
- recommended for Ukraine by Best Lawyers International, The Legal 500, IFLR 1000 and PLC Which Lawyer?.
Education:
- LL.D. in Securities Law from Kiev Taras Shevchenko University Law Department;
- LL.M. in Transnational Business Practice from McGeorge School of Law (Muskie Fellow);
- LL.B., summa cum laude, from Kiev Taras Shevchenko University Law Department (joint degree with Diploma in English translation from the Department of Foreign Languages);
- Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg;
- University of Michigan.
Selected experience:
- advising on Ukrainian law aspects of benchmark cross-border M&A transactions involving Ukrainian companies, such as the acquisition of Unimilk CIS operations by Danone, the acquisition of Cadbury by Kraft Foods, and the merger of Alpha bank and Eurobank, as well as numerous Ukrainian M&A deals, including the acquisition of Kolos by Glencore, the acquisition of gypsum and plasterboard subsidiaries of Lafarge by Etex Group, acquisition by Abris Capital Partners of 17 retail stores from Roveks, acquisition of XXI Century, sale of Ukrros to Kernel, sale of Allseeds to Kernel, sale of KP Media, sale of Fortis Life Insurance Ukraine to Horizon Capital, sale of Central European Media Enterprises Ltd to Harley Trading Limited, acquisition by TUI Travel of Voyage Kiev and Galopom po Evropam, acquisition by Evraz of of five metallurgy plants in Ukraine, sale of Volia Cable to Providence, and sale of Sandora to PepsiAmericas and PepsiCo;
- handling M&A transactions involving over a dozen Ukrainian banks, including the acquisition by Sberbank of Volksbank, acquisition by First Ukrainian International Bank of Renaissance Credit Bank, acquisition by Platinum Bank of Home Credit Bank, Sale by Platinum Bank of Vostok Bank, acquisition by Alpha Bank of Astra Bank, acquisition by Societe Generale of Ikar Bank, and acquisition by Piraeus Bank of International Commerce Bank;
- private placements by Nadra Bank and Creativ Group;
- advising bidders in the privatizations of Kryvorizhstal, KGOKOR, Odessa Port Plant and regional electricity distribution companies;
- advising on Ukrainian law issues and providing expert opinions in connection with arbitration and court proceedings taking place abroad, including in connection with Football Club Dynamo-Kyiv, Podil-Plaza Business Center, Nadra Bank, Antonov aircrafts arrested in Canada and Belgium;
- advising major corporations, such as Apple, Beam, Coca-Cola, Dyckerhoff, Henkel, and Philip Morris, on Ukrainian competition law issues, including development trainings and compliance programs, conducting mock down raids, etc;
- representing multinationals in various investigations and proceedings at the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, including Amadeus, Coca-Cola, Dyckerhoff, TNK-BP, Visa and Western Union;
- merger clearance for numerous mergers and acquisitions in the agricultural, electricity, food processing, insurance and shipbuilding industries, including for Alpha Bank, Arcapita, Cadbury, Central European Media Enterprises, Citibank, Comcast, Evraz, First Data Corporation, Generali, Goldman Sachs, Hewlett Packard, Itron Inc, Japan Tobacco, LBO France, Metalloinvest, Monsanto, Philips, Porsche, Renaissance Capital, Sberbank, Severstal, Société Générale, TNK-BP, and Thyssenkrupp.