Frank Henkel

Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright LLP

Munich T:+49 (89) 212148456

Frank Henkel

Frank Henkel is a corporate lawyer based in Munich. He has a broad range of experience in acting for clients in the financial institutions, technology and automotive sectors, both on domestic and cross-border M&A transactions and on corporate restructurings/reorganisations.

He regularly advises financial and strategic investors on acquisitions and joint ventures, FinTech related investments including in the payment services and cryptocurrency sectors. Frank frequently speaks at seminars on FinTech regulation in Germany.

Frank recently advised several automotive manufacturers and suppliers on the corporate and regulatory aspects of autonomous driving and mobility services with a focus on joint ventures and co-investments.

Frank is regularly listed as a recommended lawyer for corporate, M&A and FinTech in various legal directories including Best Lawyers, Chambers and JUVE.

Professional experience

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Education

Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich
University of Oxford

Admissions

Rechtsanwalt (German qualified lawyer) 2006

Representative experience

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft – on the global joint venture with Daimler AG combining the entire mobility services offering (including ride-hailing, car-sharing, charging, parking and multimodality); on the buy-out of several minority shareholders in parking services provider Parkmobile; and on the reorganization of its fleet leasing services in Germany including the merger between Alphabet and LHS
BMW Bank – on the reorganization of its financial services division in Spain, France and Italy including cross-border mergers
AnaCap Financial Partners, the specialist European financial services private equity firm – on its investment in SaaS Fintech company fintus; on its investment in brokerage group MRH Trowe, one of the ten largest industrial brokers in Germany; on the acquisition of a majority stake in online payment company Heidelberger Payment; and on the acquisition of POS terminal provider StarTec Payment & Service GmbH
Armira – on the acquisition of Salesfive, one of the leading digital transformation and Salesforce consultancies in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
FSN Capital VI – on an investment in MEGABAD, a leading e-commerce retailer of sanitary products and accessories in the DACH region
Gamut Capital / JPW Industries, a German subsidiary of Baileigh Industrial – on the reorganization of the group following its acquisition by JPW Industries, a portfolio company of US private equity investor Gamut Capital
Purplebricks, a leading online real estate agent listed on the London Stock Exchange – on the formation of a joint venture with Axel Springer and the joint acquisition of shares in German online real estate broker Homeday, a real estate appraisals and brokerage services online platform operator as well as on a further financing round in connection with the joint venture with Axel Springer concerning the German online real estate broker Homeday
ReachLocal GmbH, a leading provider of online marketing and advertising solutions – on the sale of its business to RegioHelden GmbH
International private equity group – on the establishment of a cryptocurrency exchange platform integrated into a financial services/banking services provider as well as on the co-investment into a FinTech platform for the provision of services to a bank specialised in car financing
Cryptocurrency broker – on the collaboration with a European bank for the provision of regulated clearing and settlement services for cryptocurrency trades
European bank – on the establishment of an electronic platform for private wealth management services in Germany
German Landesbank – on the structuring of an investment into a block-chain based platform designed to facilitate interbank trading of assets
Middle Eastern bank – on the structuring of a joint-venture with several European FinTech companies in the payments services sector
OnVista Bank – on the acquisition of the German operations of the Swedish online broker Nordnet Bank
Ikano – on the reorganisation of the business of the German subsidiary in a cross-border merger with the Swedish bank
Nordea Bank – on the transfer of the entire German business operations from the Finnish to the Swedish branch
Amundi – on the merger of its asset management activities in Germany, including the setting up of a new branch office
Encore Capital and JC Flowers as shareholders of Cabot Financial – in the bidding process for German debt collection group GFKL
IMI Plc – on the acquisition of the pneumatics division of a leading German industrial group in a bidding process
Chinese consortium led by China Renaissance Capital Investment, Inc. and Zhengzhou Coal Mining Machinery Group Co., Ltd. – on the acquisition of the global starter motors and generators business of Robert Bosch in an auction process
Instrument Systems Optische Messtechnik – on the sale to Konica Minolta Optics
US based Nexovation group – in the bidding process for the Nürburgring racetrack

Rankings and recognitions

Best lawyer in Germany for M&A/corporate law, Best Lawyers, 2021
Notable practitioner, FinTech legal: Germany, Chambers and Partners, 2020
Recommended lawyer for M&A, JUVE, 2019-2020
Recommended lawyer, The Legal 500 Germany

Publications

Autonomous vehicles: "It's all about you!" The Integration of biometrics into autonomous vehicles, 9/2019
Autonomous vehicles: "Pedal to the Metal or Slamming on the Brakes?" Worldwide Regulation of Autonomous Vehicles, 9/2018
Autonomous vehicles: The legal landscape of Dedicated Short Range Communication in the US, UK and Germany, 7/2017
Regulatorische Rahmenbedingungen für FinTechs in Deutschland, Venture Capital Magazin, 3/2017
Autonomous vehicles: The legal landscape in Germany, 7/2016
Le secteur de la finance en mutation – une renaissance pour les FUSAQ?, 3/2015

Speaking engagements

German unicorns and their specifics, pre-NOAH conference VC and start-up dinner, Berlin
Investment and exit trends in Germany, Billion Dollar Start-ups in the US and Europe, NRF London
Banks and FinTechs – observations on digitisation, regulation and collaboration, FinTech – the digital transformation of financial services, NRF Munich
Legal aspects of online financings, Business Breakfast Mittelstand meets FinTech, NRF Munich
Digital transformation as driver for M&A, Award of World Honour for Dr Jürgen Reul, General Counsel of Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft, NRF Munich

Memberships and activities