Top 50 US firm Milbank has hired a team of equity capital markets lawyers from Clifford Chance in Frankfurt to bolster its German capital markets practice.

The team is led by partner Philipp Klöckner, who is joined by special counsel Nico Feuerstein and associate Mira Zimmermann.

They bring with them extensive experience across a variety of ECM transactions, including initial public offerings, public takeovers, SPACs, rights offerings, block trades and stock dividends. They regularly advise issuers, investment banks, private equity and venture capital investors on German deals, as well as in other European jurisdictions and the US. In addition, they provide broader securities, governance and corporate law advice, while their arrival expands Milbank’s ability to offer prospectus preparation, approval and listing procedures in Germany.

Scott Edelman, Milbank’s chairman, said: “The arrival of Philipp Klöckner is another significant step in the development of our German and international practice in a core area of our firm. Our goal is to advise our clients worldwide on all their major transactions. Capital markets law is an important component, which we are now strengthening and expanding in Germany with Philipp on board.”

Klöckner spent just over three years as a partner at Clifford Chance, having spent the first decade of his career as an associate at Sullivan & Cromwell. Feuerstein, meantime, joined Clifford Chance as counsel at the start of last year, having previously spent more than six years at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and just over two-and-a-half years at Ashurst before that.

Norbert Rieger, global head of Milbank’s corporate group, said: “The addition of Philipp Klöckner and his team and the resulting strengthening of our public M&A and capital markets practice is the next logical step in the development of our advisory scope. Philipp and team are the perfect addition to our German and international practice.”

Recent deals Klöckner and his team advised on include HomeToGo’s de-SPAC transaction and German laboratory diagnostics company Synlab’s IPO.

Milbank is not the only firm seeking to expand its German presence in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Eversheds Sutherland said it had hired former PwC German head Steffen Schniep to launch the firm’s Frankfurt office, opening in January next year. Also this month, Latham & Watkins hired real estate partner Carsten Loll from Linklaters, who will split his time between the firm’s Frankfurt and Munich offices.