On November 4, 2024, CEE Legal Matters reported that Greenberg Traurig's Warsaw office has launched a new Project and Structured Finance Practice with the arrival of Partner Piotr Nerwinski and his team, aiming to expand their services across Poland and the CEE region. Nerwinski spoke with CEE Legal Matters about his move as well as the new practice launch.
CEELM: First, congratulations on the move, and best of luck in the new role! What were the main reasons for the move for you personally – what were the main "pulls"?
Nerwinski: Thank you! There was never just one driver. This strategic move was caused by several factors. First, Greenberg Traurig is well known for its market-leading M&A, private equity, real estate practices, and capital markets – strong both domestically and as an excellent platform to expand into Central and Eastern Europe.
After a very good ten years with Dentons, which, to some extent, shaped my whole career, I felt it was a perfect time to move on and take the next great step. Greenberg Traurig is expanding steadily but continuously – from around 50 lawyers in 2012 to around 110 lawyers now. They are constantly adding new practices, which is extremely appealing – to be in a place of constant growth where our team can leverage those opportunities.
I was also really positively influenced by the leadership of the firm – Richard Rosenbaum, Lejb Fogelman, and Jolanta Nowakowska-Zimoch – their vision and strategy presented a very strong proposition for me and my team.
CEELM: Their vision was what ultimately drew you? What was it about it specifically that you found appealing?
Nerwinski: Yes, their vision of a firm that is complementary, anticipates the trends of the market, and is ready to respond to its needs. For many years, it was known as a top-tier M&A firm. As the market evolved and there was a growing need to add a real estate practice, Greenberg Traurig adjusted its business model, brought in teams, and built up what is currently a leading practice in real estate.
We saw similar reactions in the energy market – they brought in a team and built it up. I like to be in a place that anticipates, not only responds to market needs. It doesn't mean you need to build the largest firm, but having excellent practices with whom we can cooperate is extremely important for the finance practice.
CEELM: Your joining Greenberg Traurig also marks the launch of a new practice. What is it, and why did it make sense to create it?
Nerwinski: It's not that we are inventing something from scratch – we're starting with seven strong lawyers, my trusted colleagues who have worked with me for many years. We work now for the same clients – banks, sponsors, alternative funds, etc. The sectors and types of transactions are also similar – we cover the whole spectrum of financings. But our new practice will be able to serve clients even more comprehensively through collaboration with other leading practices. When that proposal was made to me, it made perfect sense – adding a practice that would integrate well with the firm and our services will also complement the existing corporate finance offering led by Andrzej Wysokinski.
What is particularly important is that we are active not only in the Polish market but also in other countries in the CEE region, acting as lead counsel. We have a very good track record in the Baltics and the Balkans. This is due to our client base but also our good understanding of the region.
CEELM: What are the main synergies you found between your existing team and Greenberg Traurig's practice?
Nerwinski: The idea was that a strong finance practice – regardless of specialty – works well when combined with other departments.
For me, it was important to have a very good energy practice – in Greenberg Traurig, which is led by Konrad Kosicki, a Local Partner whom I've known for many years personally. That ensures solid cooperation in my book. I'm excited about that going forward.
It's the same with the infrastructure practice and Local Partner Tomek Korczynski – we spent many years working together at Dentons.
On the wider spectrum, we get cooperation with top-tier corporate M&A, whether big-ticket or mid-sized deals – a great opportunity.
To supplement it all is the real estate practice, where we've always done one of the biggest transactions in Poland we have always been known for very good expertise in that field.
Finally, and rather uniquely, we have an ESG practice led by Counsel Karolina Kuzniak. For us, this is important because banks are no longer allowed to finance many sectors of the economy and EU taxonomy plays a big role. Green loans and sustainability-linked loans are the new norm. I'm grateful that we have that practice and can use it in financing transactions – nowadays, we rarely see new financing without an ESG element and these issues are becoming more and more complex.
CEELM: What are the immediate next steps?
Nerwinski: We got a really warm welcome at Greenberg Traurig, and I was impressed by how things worked internally. That was important – we are in Q4 and have a number of ongoing transactions and, from day one, we ensured a seamless experience. In the near future, we are focused on the transactions we have in the pipeline and promoting our new practice.
CEELM: What about the mid-term? What goals are you setting for yourself and the new practice?
Nerwinski: In the mid-term, I think it's important to leverage the cooperation with the other practices, especially in the Polish market. We want to propose joint offerings to our clients. Actually, from day one we already started projects where we work together with other practices.
We also aim to expand to the wider region. We already have some transactions in the wider CEE region, but we'd like to get more familiar and cooperate closer with our London, Amsterdam, and Berlin offices.
CEELM: Any particular markets you are focusing on?
Nerwinski: Especially important for project finance and renewables – the trend is going east from Poland. A couple of years back, Poland was not that sophisticated in terms of financing structures. The Polish market matured very quickly and good practices and experience are being used in other countries in the CEE region. That is the case especially in the Baltics with Latvia in particular opening for renewables these days. The same goes for Romania – this year it saw the first CfD auction. We are constantly working and want to do more in the Western Balkans.
CEELM: Looking at the market itself, what are the main trends you see impacting the Polish financing landscape?
Nerwinski: I think it's high interest rates. Financing is quite expensive at the moment – we hope it'll drop in a short time, but it means that there are no longer as many simple transactions. Sponsors are looking more carefully and there is more scrutiny on the structures, which means you need a solid legal team – not just on the drafting of the documentation side but also in developing the financing structures. That's exactly what we aim to do.
We were one of the first teams that worked on revolving facilities for renewables – quite an innovative product for the Polish market. In these times, clients need not only legal services but real partners who understand their business needs.
We also appreciate the development on the corporate financing side and the number of transactions with an element of sustainability. It allows banks to finance the transactions in accordance with their policies but also allows sponsors to show their stakeholders that they care about environmental or social aspects and that they can improve those aspects.
We are also closely looking at the development of battery storage projects. We already have a number of onshore wind and photovoltaic projects, but these are unstable energy sources and need to be stabilized via storage. We're keeping our fingers crossed for the first financings of such projects.
CEELM: What are some of the regulatory or legislative changes on the horizon you are keeping an eye out for?
Nerwinski: Currently, the financing landscape is quite stable from a regulatory perspective, and we want to keep it that way – that's good for business.
CEELM: Finally, what are you looking forward to the most for the end of 2024?
Nerwinski: Closing a couple of deals that are still ongoing – it is always a nice feeling, to deliver on the projects by the end of the year and have a good Christmas for our clients and the team.
