Cobalt‘s sizeable team regularly handles complex financing transactions, capital market projects and financial regulatory matters. The practice is jointly led by Kristel Raidla-Talur, Marina Kotkas and head of compliance Monika Koolmeister. The group is praised for its ability to ‘find suitable know-how on a range of matters’ and is able to utilise its access to the WSG and Lex Mundi networks to handle cross-border matters. A standout recent mandate for the team saw it advising the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Kaarel Eller and Greete-Kristiine Kuru are key contacts at the associate level.

Raino Paron heads the team at Ellex and is highlighted by one client for having ‘a great understanding of the market and deep legal knowledge about complex issues while having a business-oriented mindset’. Gerli Kivisoo, Ermo Kosk and Marko Kairjak are also key practitioners in the department. As a corporate law expert, Kivisoo is a standout contact for M&A-related banking and finance matters, and Helen Ratso is singled out for her ability to assist fund managers with day-to-day matters and in transactions. Key clients for the group include Swedbank as well as public clients such as the Republic of Estonia (through the Ministry of Finance). Toomas Kasesalu is a name to note at the associate level.

Eversheds Sutherland Ots & Co ‘stands out for its resourcefulness, out-of-the-box thinking, impeccable project management, and the ability to navigate through ambiguous legal norms’. At the helm are Dmitri Zdobnõh, who ‘stands out for his detail and magnificent legal structures to solve issues’, and Maivi Ots, who is noted by one client as ‘the best negotiator I know‘. Senior associate Artjom Luik has over 10 years of experience in a wide range of banking and finance matters. There is a wealth of debt capital markets expertise in the team, which is leveraged to work on capital raising transactions.

Sorainen‘s group adopts a multidisciplinary approach, so that clients ‘can get additional input from other members of their firm‘ as the group ‘includes colleagues who are necessary for the specific problem or question’. Kätlin Krisak heads the team, specialising primarily in capital markets, and is singled out for being ‘excellent on points of law’ and getting ‘straight to the heart of the commercial concerns of the matter in a very efficient manner’. The team, which includes Kamilla Alma Vilderson and Hetti Lump, is well known for its work on large-scale transactions for major financial services companies.

Major banks in the region, such as Coop Pank, turn to the finance team at TGS Baltic. In 2022 and 2023, the group was involved in some of the largest transactions in the country, and it is also active in complex regulatory matters. Kirsti Pent, who leads the team, has a great deal of experience in banking law, particularly in mandates related to financial innovation. Kirill Ležeiko was a new arrival in 2024 following the firm’s merger with PwC Legal.

WALLESS counts leading global banks and law firms among its clients and regularly appears in cross-border transactions. Hannes Vallikivi, ‘a very experienced partner with great knowledge is this field’, leads the team and is well supported by the ‘experienced, extremely creative and solution-oriented’ Andres Siigur. The group has a strong regulatory practice, as well as ‘the capacity to handle any kind of finance and capital market transaction’. Kaisa Saarmann is a name to note for project finance deals. In early 2024, the practice gained the expertise of Merit Lind and her team following the firm’s merger with FORT.

RASK Attorneys-at-Law‘s banking and finance department is a popular choice among investment companies and credit institutions, which turn to the ‘well-balanced, very professional and readily available’ team for its ‘good knowledge of the law and market’. A key element of the group’s work is advising regulators, and Timo Kullerkupp and Karl Erik Esko, who jointly lead the team, are instrumental in this regard.

Triniti's banking and finance practice draws on the input of ‘very competent, business-oriented and results-oriented‘ lawyers. The team is led by Katri Tomson, who is supported by senior associate Tõnis Loorits, who joined the team in 2022 from WALLESS. Ergo Blumfeldt is a go-to name in the team for transactions, having advised on over a hundred transactions with over €4.6bn in value. The firm also has offices in Latvia and Lithuania, allowing it to handle cross-border deals.

KPMG Law in Estonia, whose team ‘consists of attorneys who have previous hands-on experience in the area‘, is able to leverage its wider network to combine business consultancy, financial, tax and IT law with banking, finance and capital markets advice. Managing partner Karin Oras often leads multidisciplinary teams to advise on large projects. Elsewhere in the team, Katri Remmelgas has a strong knowledge of banking and finance law, and has international experience in anti-money laundering and terrorist financing prevention and investigation.

TARK‘s banking team is led by Allar Aru, Tanel Küün and Tanel Tark and utilises its multidisciplinary legal knowledge to help clients with a range of transactional and regulatory issues in the banking and finance sphere. In particular, regulatory advice is a key element of Küün’s practice.