Nikolay, founding partner in Bulgaria, has established and co-leads the Bulgarian financial services law practice.
Nikolay established in 2001 and now co-leads the firm’s financial services practice in Bulgaria, one of this country’s premier practices in capital markets and banking. Nikolay is widely recognized as leading practitioner in these practice areas.
He is also continually active in financial sector M&A transactions, as well as in projects in North Macedonia, where Nikolay works together with experienced locally qualified lawyers.
Nikolay has been in charge of the Bulgarian legal aspects of some of Bulgaria’s biggest capital markets transactions and financial sector M&A transactions, including (all the following information is available in the public domain) Bulgaria’s sovereign bond transactions since 2012, Vivacom’s high-yield bonds in 2013, Energo-Pro group debt issuances since 2016, Fibank’s acquisition of Bayerishe Landesbank’s Bulgarian subsidiary in 2013, Transact Europe’s sale in 2022 and more.
Whether you are an issuer or investment bank or firm contemplating issuing or placing debt or equity instruments, a lender or borrower, a derivatives counterparty, a payment institution, Nikolay can advise you on a range of transactional and regulatory matters. His professional track record is in banking law and prudential regulation, the prospectus regime, investment funds, derivatives and repurchases master agreements, among others.
Nikolay regularly contributes to specialized publications, such as International Securities Law and Regulation (Bulgaria), International Banking Law and Regulation (Bulgaria and North Macedonia), Securities Litigation Review (Bulgaria), M&A Law Review (Bulgaria), and many more
Nikolay also has significant experienced in legislative drafting, in Bulgaria and North Macedonia.
Nikolay is a member of the International Bar Association, of the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the New York City Bar Association and the Federal Bar Association.
Latest Insights
- legal updatesFinancial Services Regulatory Calendar 2025
- sell-side advisor in the circa US$ 28 million sale of Transact Europe group; Transact Europe EAD is a globally active EMI (2022)
- project leader (Bulgarian part) and key drafter of Bulgaria’s Covered Bonds Act, enacted in April 2022; a project under the auspices of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (2020-2022)
- the IPO and BEAM listing of Dronamics Capital, a first of a kind SPV investing in SAFE notes of Dronamics Global (2021)
- circa € 27 million AT1 notes of First Investment Bank, single transaction counsel (2021)
- € 10 million T2 notes of TBI Bank, single transaction counsel (2021)
- € 2.5 billion two-tranched sovereign notes of Republic of Bulgaria, acting issuer-side (2020)
Nikolay regularly receives individual top ranking (Tier 1, Band 1, Market Leader) as legal practitioner in the respective practice areas by ranking such as Legal 500, Chambers Europe, IFLR 1000, Best Lawyers.
- Member of Sofia Bar Association, Bulgaria since 1999
- Member of New York Bar Association, USA since 2011
- Tax Consultant, PwC
- LL.M. degree, Columbia Law School in the City of New York, USA, 2006-2007
- LL.M. degree, Sofia University St. Kliment of Ohrid, Faculty of Law, Bulgaria, 1991-1997