Europe

We undertook research and liaised with the provider and with our US based colleagues to determine the position and enable the client to formulate an informed succession plan regarding the funds in question.

He had a diverse range of business interests held through a variety of trust structures established by him and his family. The client's previous adviser had retired and he asked us to conduct a review to ensure that he was compliant with his US tax reporting obligations and to advise on the evolution of his trust holding structures. This review was completed and to the client's satisfaction confirmed that he had no undiscovered liabilities. Since then we have worked with the client and his family to develop a plan for the future devolution of his wealth and the maintenance of his children.

While discussing the estate planning we drew his attention to potential issues that would arise from the way the sale deal was being structured and advised him to effect alternative structuring which resulted in him avoiding a potentially significant exposure to double taxation. We have since manage to assist him with appropriate structuring through which the family will organise philanthropic activities.

The team have undertaken structural planning projects involving the family's trust structures and for individual family members in the light of the current (and anticipated changes both in the US and UK) tax regimes of all the relevant jurisdictions, trust and investment issues arising from the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on the full spectrum of investments owned and taking into account the upcoming age of majority of some of the US/UK beneficiaries.

This advice was to eliminate large amounts of historic income and gains that otherwise would be adversely taxed at nearly confiscatory rates under the US 'throwback rules' when eventually distributed to US person beneficiaries who also are UK resident, while preserving the trust's favourable classification as an 'excluded property' and 'protected' trust for UK income, gains and inheritance tax purposes.

Acted for Acin, a data standards firm that is digitising operational and non-financial risk, on its $12 million Series A financing led by Notion Capital, with other investors including Fitch Ventures.

Advising leading payments company, SaltPay on their global expansion across Europe and Africa.

Advising Arex European Market on its venture funding round from Lifeline Ventures, Initial Capital and others.

Advising on Arex European Market's platform collaboration and data sharing agreement with Xero. This involved Intellectual Property and data protection, banking and finance and financial services regulatory aspects.

Advising Decimal Factor Ltd, an innovative Fintech start-up which provides business funding to small businesses.

Advising lead investor, Draper Esprit, on the $125 million Series B financing of Thought Machine, a UK fintech building cloud-native technology for banks.

Advising Draper Esprit on a $50 million Series B investment into PrimaryBid, a British fintech platform that connects retail investors with public companies raising capital.

Advising Draper Esprit on the US$60 million Series B funding of FintechOS, a leading European fintech whose technology dramatically reduces the time it takes for financial institutions to build end-to-end digital products.

Advising lead investor, Gauss Ventures, on the $55 million Series B financing of Curve, a UK fintech whose platform consolidates multiple cards and accounts into one card and one app.

Advising Habito in connection with multiple funding rounds, including its £18.5 million (Series B) venture financing.

Advising leading payments company, SaltPay on their global expansion across Europe and Africa.

Advising Raisin on its expansion into the UK market.

Advising Ruth Parasols family office, RG Advisors, on their £25 million majority control investment into AIM listed financial services group, City of London Group plc for the purpose of funding the growth of a new challenger bank, Recognise which also saw Ms Parasol welcome return to the UK public markets.

Advising Wise (TransferWise) in connection to multiple funding rounds, including its €280 million (Series E) venture financing. Also advising on their commercial and technology arrangements with third parties and successfully representing them in relation to numerous competitor disputes, as well as advising on and managing its global trade mark portfolio.

These projects involve the use of model form documents for development agreements, finance agreements and leases, which are tailored to reflect particular considerations in relation to the school or site in question.

We advised on their operations in the UK, particularly on employment status issues and TUPE.

We advised on the framework documentation and forms of call off contract for the procurement of professional services for a range of capital projects to service their estates.

We advised our client on the establishment and structure of a new international school including advice on corporate matters and funding arrangements.

We advised our client on on its acquisition of a leading UK university. This included establishing a new company to run the university and applying for that company to be registered with the Office for Students, awarded university title and degree awarding powers. We continue to advise the university itself on a number of matters following completion of the deal.

We advised a leading American University to renew its sponsor licence in order to enable the continued sponsorship of study abroad programs in the UK.

We assisted on its arrangements to establish international schools in Hong Kong and China.

We advised a leading London university on a new phase of student accommodation, including new build elements, renovation of a new listed student block, and design/installation of a combined heat and power facility to service the site.

Advising an academy on successfully securing an injunction and re-inspection where the academy contested the results of its initial OFSTED inspection. This was a ground breaking outcome.

We advised an education provider on the sale of three independent schools and the acquisition of two independent schools for one of the largest independent school groups in the UK.

Advising an independent school in central London on restructuring its governance arrangements.

We supported our client on their international fundraising projects.

We advised a French university on the registration of its French supporting foundation as a charity in the UK for tax purposes under the Finance Act 2010.

We advised Georgetown University on a range of issues relating to its two UK affiliates including immigration, data protection and structuring advice in relation to the Transnational Centre for Legal Studies.

We supported a large London based educational institution who were facing a campaign of defamatory allegations.

We advised our client on the refurbishment of a listed building on the university's central London campus to provide a new law school, and advising the same university on construction and procurement matters associated with the further redevelopment of the same campus.

We advised him on his education projects, including legal support around the establishment and operation of two academies and a friends of charity.

We advised our client, an owner of a preparatory school in Oxfordshire, on the sale of his school to a private investor.

Advising our client on the potential creation of a new Permanent Private Hall within Oxford University.

in relation to its leasing matters in Hong Kong, Australia and U.K.

in the formation of a UK joint venture with an Australian listed property company for the development of a residential project in London.

Advised on the proposed acquisition of Corus Hyde Park Hotel via the acquisition of its owner, Plaza on Hyde Park Limited, a UK incorporated company.

We advised a high net worth US citizen residing in the UK on tax and reporting around their cryptocurrency investments.

We assisted a local Hong Kong client who runs a crypto assets trading company with his pre-UK immigration tax and residence planning and Hong Kong profits tax analysis. The trading company is based in an offshore jurisdiction with servers across the world. From a UK perspective, we provided advice on management and control issues of overseas companies, how Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will tax transactions involving crypto assets trading that are undertaken by companies as well as how HMRC tax individuals who own crypto assets. We analysed these issues alongside the client’s personal tax and residence issues to ensure coherent planning that takes into account personal planning and the crypto business planning.

From a Hong Kong perspective, we provided tax and regulatory advice and analysed under what circumstances the Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department would tax profits made by the offshore trading company and whether the trading requires prior authorisation from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission.

in Cyprus on the intra-group transfer of its IP rights to its Singapore company.

On its acquisition of a majority stake in a Hong Kong-based digital consultancy company.

On relation to his relocation to the UK prior to a significant liquidity event. This involved complex pre-immigration UK tax planning, including the disposal and restructuring of several significant assets before becoming resident, the reorganization of multiple bank accounts with multiple banks to provide for tax efficient remittances to the UK, and the creation of a trust for his wife and children.

Acted on the acquisition of a flagship building in Milan's golden triangle shopping district.

Advising on the sale of an apartment hotel in London for a sovereign wealth fund and advice on securing bank financing.

Acting on an option to acquire a development site in the UK.

Advice on the acquisition and management of investment properties in central London for a family focused in the luxury brands sector. The most recent acquisition was for £140million.

Assisting an Italian start-up with the launch of a cloud-based human resource solution for Italian and international businesses.

Setting up the brand protection practice for a leading company in the fashion industry and advising the client on the day by day IP activities such as, managing civil, criminal actions, custom monitoring, parallel imports issues and coordination of counsels in several countries (including China, US, and other EU countries).

Dealing directly with the SFO on behalf of Steward Ford, the founder and CEO of Keydata, which led to the SFO dropping their investigation.

Advising the Group Finance Director of Serco who avoided any SFO interest, though more junior executives have been charged.

We defended the medical equipment division of Europe’s largest industrial manufacturer in a U.S. DOJ investigation of alleged bribes to secure equipment purchases by large municipal hospital system. Again, we successfully ensured that no charges were brought against our client.

We successfully represented a joint venture partner of a major telecom company in connection with multi-jurisdictional FCPA investigation and proceedings by SEC, DOJ and other nations’ law enforcement agencies. The case concerned the award of a contract for a CIS country’s national cellphone infrastructure, secured through bribes paid to President’s daughter. Our client was not charged or required to contribute to hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements paid by Scandinavian partner.

Advising a senior figure in the oil industry on an SFO investigation / US Department of Justice investigation regarding bribery allegations in Europe, Asia and the US. This included advising the client on whether to engage with the SFO in England and negotiating a hold harmless letter from the Department of Justice to allow our client to undertake business trips to the US without fear of arrest.

Acted for ETF Partners, who led a $70M investment into E-Leather, a UK-based company developing patented high-tech materials technology. This Series C funding is for their partnership with Nike to develop the Flyleather line.

We acted for the Business of Fashion in relation to their Series B financing round led by the Financial Times. This is a great step in the continuing growth and development for our client.

We acted for one of the most renown fashion bloggers in the world. We provided strategic advice for the implementation of the client's e-commerce platform. We also helped in establishing the client-owned group of companies' GDPR compliance program along with the relevant employee's training and ad hoc advice for special fan-interaction projects.

We are assisting a well-known Italian luxury lifestyle and fashion company in respect of their online platform and e-commerce agreement

advised on the acquisition of a building in Old Bond Street for £140 million for a private foreign investor

This House is a landmark building in Berlin's Mitte District. Guests can enjoy the rooftop pool, large gym and spa with plenty of space to eat drink and sleep

Located along a stretch of the picturesque Cycladic coastline, Soho Roc House offers the ultimate wellbeing experience for members

Advising M&L Hospitality on its management agreements with Hyatt for Hyatt Regency Manchester Oxford Road and Hyatt House Manchester Oxford Road

Advising Ralph Trustees Limited in relation to various hotel interests including The Athenaeum Hotel, Piccadilly, The Grove and The Runnymede.

Advised the owner/operator on the sale of the Athenaeum Hotel and Residences

Advised on the acquisition of the hotel from an overseas fund. Also advised on bank financing, tax structuring and the terms of the existing hotel management agreement

Located in a 1930s building on the Singel Canal, Soho House Amsterdam is the ideal space for eating, drinking and meeting, boasting a gym, spa, screening room and rooftop pool

Located in the city's Gothic Quarter overlooking Port Vell Marina, Soho House Barcelona focuses on delivering the ultimate health and fitness and food and drinks experience to its guests

Situated in the 19th century Palazzo Corpi in Belyoglu, the House boasts multiple spaces for members to eat, drink and meet with an exclusive rooftop bar overlooking the Golden Horn

Curve is one of the UK's leading fintech companies, having developed a platform that lets its customers consolidate all of their bank cards into a single Curve card and app to make it easier to manage spending and access other benefits. It recently raised a US$55M Series B financing, on which Withers tech advised lead investor, Gauss Ventures, a venture capital fund based in London focusing on fintech and the data economy.

Snyk is a London and Boston-based company that focuses on identifying and developing security solutions for developers. We advised the company on its recent $70M funding round, led by Accel and with participation from existing investors GV and Boldstart, with such funding intended to support the company as it scales its operations on a global basis.

Sofar Sounds transforms everyday spaces (typically living rooms) into venues for immersive and personal live events, bringing artists and their fans close together and putting on 600 shows per month in 430 cities worldwide. As a long-standing client we were delighted to support them on their recent $25M round, led by Battery Ventures and Union Square Ventures.

Longstanding client Symphony Ventures is a global consulting and managed services firm, specialising in Intelligent Automation (IA) and Robotics Process Automation (RPA). In October 2019 Symphony was purchased by US based Sykes Enterprises, Incorporated, and we were delighted to advise the company's founders and investors in connection with this sale.

Long-standing client, The Business of Fashion Ltd (BoF), is a leading media company covering the fashion and luxury sector. It recently completed a Series B financing led by the Financial Times, on which several of BoF's key existing investors, including Index Ventures and Felix Capital, also participated. Withers tech was proud to have acted for BoF on this exciting new partnership.

Coople is also in the business of matching prople with work. It runs a large number of tailored relationships with venues, event spaces and workplaces. We have helped to review the legal framework of those relationships to mitigate emplotment-related risks.

Involved in a successful consortium bid – receiving the largest award in the AI Grand Challenge funding. Assisted in the development and commercialisation of cutting-edge machine learning powered smart drafting technology, where we were partners alongside Genie AI, Imperial College and Oxford University.

Job Today seeks to match people with work in the hospitality sector. Their technology enables fast and flexible hiring and targets in particular the "mobile-first millennials". We advised on the positioning of their activities with respect to employment law obligations and risks.

Assisting several top-tier Italian winemakers in the creation of multi-jurisdictional e-commerce platforms.

Advised a cutting-edge lab-grown meat provider on its licensing arrangements with third parties based in the UK, Germany and Japan to scale up their production. We also assisted the company with their research and development program and branding.

Withers Tech assisted Excelredstone negotiate the supply of its telephony, infrastructure and technology services to 100 Bishopsgate (a 37-storey office tower in the City).

Represented one of the leading Italian fibre network providers to perform due diligence on compliance with telecoms regulation during the acquisition of an Italian national telecoms operator.

Assisted an Italian company with digital film distribution rights during a project to set up of its platform for Internet Protocol Television (IPTV).

Successfully representing a fixed line network provider in relation to a wholesale telephony dispute against one of the world's largest telcos.

Represented the provider of a BYOD (bring your own device) solution in connection with the licensing of its technology to a Regtech business, and a subsequent cyber security dispute.

Withers Tech acted for VeriMe (a leading provider of age verification technology) before the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court in the enforcement of its registered trade mark portfolio against an Asian-based competitor.

Withers Tech advised Attractions.io (a leading provider of customer engagement technologies to theme park operators) in connection with the provision of its technology to Merlin Entertainments PLC for use at, amongst others, LEGOLAND and Alton Towers.

Assisted Contact Engine (a customer engagements SaaS provider) in its negotiations with enterprise level clients – e.g. Virgin Media, BT and Sky.

Assisting a worldwide operating Italian fashion brand in the implementation of a new IT solution for the engagement of the public through the embedding of their social media posts on the client's official website

Advising an Italian Edtech provider in the development of an innovative tech platform for young talents' career development

Withers tech advised Stress Point Health (the provider of a digital therapy to combat stress, anxiety and PTSD) in connection with its B2C contracts and data protection compliance.

Withers tech assisted Thunderhead (a customer engagement analytics SaaS provider) in its negotiations with Salesforce (the world's number one CRM provider) to act as a global reseller partner for Thunderhead's solutions.

Advising an Italian Edtech provider in the development of an innovative tech platform for young talents' career development.

Dealt with the acquisition of Cranfield Technology Park for £13.4 million.

Acted for a company headquartered in England in the protection of their rights in their proprietary software platform in respect of provision of software services to a multinational company

Advised a data science consulting company headquartered in Cyprus on the intra-group transfer of its IP rights to its Singapore company.

Advised a major London-headquartered communication conglomerate on its acquisition of a majority stake in a digital consultancy company.

We advise a London gallery in relation to a claim against their storage company for breach of contractual, common law and tortious duties, following the damage of a multimedia sculpture whilst in the storage company's possession. The dispute is centred on whether the storage company's terms and conditions were validly incorporated in the contractual relationship between the parties.