Nina Tsifudina is a Partner in the Sofia office and the head of the firm-wide Employment & Labour Law service line.

Nina focuses on M&A and corporate, employment and labour law, as well as on telecommunications, media and technology (TMT). Her focus further extends to the life sciences & healthcare and automotive & industrials sectors.

She advises clients on a wide range of transactions, in particular cross-border mergers and acquisitions and restructurings. She also represents private equity and venture capital firms on acquisitions, disposals and restructurings, as well as portfolio companies on all corporate matters.

Nina has assisted both local and international clients on all aspects of employment law, including benefits, employee share incentives, workforce restructurings and negotiations with trade unions. She is highly experienced in all employment aspects of multi-jurisdictional transactions and often takes lead in high profile TUPE transactions, share sales and outsourcing/offshoring arrangements of our clients.

Nina Tsifudina is a ‘great team leader and overall adviser’.

The team, Nina Tsifudina and Georgi Kanev, quickly got into a very industry specific topic related to IP questions on industry specific software solution. In a short period of time, they were able to investigate and provide us with their opinion and possible courses of action and as a result we were able to take an informed decision on how to move forward.

Legal 500, 2022

RECENT ENGAGEMENTS INCLUDE ADVISING

M&A and Corporate

• EARLYBIRD VENTURE CAPITAL on the EUR 3 million seed funding to the fintech startup Payhawk, a paperless corporate card that simplifies expenses for businesses
• STADA ARZNEIMITTEL, a leading Bain & Cinven-backed pharmaceuticals manufacturer, on the acquisition of Walmark, one of the fastest growing CEE consumer healthcare companies, from Mid Europa Partners; this was considered one of the most significant transactions in the CEE consumer health sector in 2019
• INTERVET INTERNATIONAL, the animal health arm of MSD/Merck, on the restructuring of their operations in Bulgaria
• KBC GROUP on the EUR 610 million acquisition of the fourth largest bank in Bulgaria, United Bulgarian Bank (UBB), and on the acquisition of the third largest leasing company in Bulgaria, Interlease, from the National Bank of Greece, as well as on the acquisition of MetLife’s remaining 40% stake in UBB-MetLife
• LION’S HEAD INVESTMENT, a joint venture between Old Mutual Property and AG Capital, on the largest office acquisition in Bulgaria encompassing two major office complexes for a total of EUR 190 million

Employment & Labour Law

• ADECCO GROUP on the spin-off of its IT business in Bulgaria including advice on TUPE-like transfer of more than 1,200 employees
• FOCUSVISION, a global survey and customer insights software company, on ongoing corporate and employment matters, including remunerations and incentives, layoffs, as well as assistance with internal labour policies
• VISTEON ELECTRONICS, an automotive electronics supplier with a technical centre in Bulgaria with more than 900 employees, on a wide range of employment issues
• NOKIA on the Bulgarian employment matters related to the integration of Alcatel-Lucent following its acquisition by NOKIA
• TUI GROUP on various labour law matters in Bulgaria, including on a complex corporate governance case
• UNITED BULGARIAN BANK on its merger with Cibank providing full scope transaction assistance and employment advice on a TUPE-like transfer of more than 2,500 employees

Technology, Media & Telecommunications (TMT)

• A LEADING EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY COMPANY based in Silicon Valley on setting up operations in Bulgaria through the acquisition of a Bulgarian team of software engineers developing SaaS for the EdTech sector
• DRAFTKINGS, a leading U.S. daily fantasy sports company, on the Bulgarian law aspects of the acquisition of SBtech, a global sports betting technology supplier with three offices and more than 800 employees in Bulgaria
• GTT COMMUNICATIONS, a multinational telecommunications and internet service provider, on the acquisition of Interoute, operator of one of Europe’s largest independent fibre networks, and its subsidiaries in CEE, from Emasan AG and Turbo Holdings Lux II
• SMULE, a Silicon Valley music mobile app, on their market entry in Bulgaria, including all types of corporate and emplpyment matters assistance related to the business set up and operations

EDUCATION

• 2002 – 2007: University St. Kliment Ohridski, Sofia, Bulgaria, Faculty of Law, LL.M.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATION

Sofia Bar Association

LANGUAGES

Bulgarian, English, German

PUBLICATIONS

• Corporate Acquisitions and Mergers Guide for Bulgaria, Corporate Acquisitions and Mergers, Wolters Kluwer, 2016 & 2019