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Benoît Vandervelde

Partner
Lawyer

Picture of Benoît Vandervelde

Benoît Vandervelde

Partner
Lawyer

T +32 2 743 69 20
F +32 2 743 69 01
CMS DeBacker
Chaussée de La Hulpe 178
1170 Brussels
Belgium
Languages French, Dutch, English

Benoît specializes in banking and finance law as well as in regulatory insurance law. He mainly advises lenders and borrowers on financial transactions, including acquisition finance, syndicated loans, real estate finance, debt restructuring, etc.
Benoît also advises financial institutions (banks, investment funds, investment firms, insurance undertakings, pension funds, payment institutions) and public authorities, both in the performance of their day-to-day activities (securitization, capital market transactions, investment products, liability of financial institutions) and in their relationships with the regulatory authorities (licensing, prudential requirements, merger and acquisition).

He is regularly consulted by regulated entities on regulatory compliance matters. Benoît also developed an in-depth knowledge in advising insurance undertakings with their operations in Belgium in the context of Brexit.

He was seconded to the banking and finance team of CMS London.

Benoît is praised for being "really pragmatic," adding that "he understands immediately what clients need and helps out straight away." He has been mentioned as “up and coming” in Chambers [2019].

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“One client admires the 'very proactive and to the point' lawyer for his brevity and timeliness, adding: "He gives concise but no-nonsense advice and keeps well to agreed timeframes.“

Feedback from a client about Benoît Vandervelde – Chambers Global, 2019 (Banking & Finance)

"The firm is 'Very proactive, able to move the files on and work at a fast pace to produce clear and helpful advice.'"

Feedback from a client about the department - Chambers Europe, 2018 (Banking & Finance)

“One client admires the 'very proactive and to the point' lawyer for his brevity and timeliness, adding: "He gives concise but no-nonsense advice and keeps well to agreed timeframes.“

Feedback from a client about Benoît Vandervelde – Chambers Global, 2019 (Banking & Finance)

"The firm is 'Very proactive, able to move the files on and work at a fast pace to produce clear and helpful advice.'"

Feedback from a client about the department - Chambers Europe, 2018 (Banking & Finance)

Relevant experience

  • Regularly acting for lenders or borrowers on cross-border LMA transactions, i.e. drafting and negotiating LMA credit facility, intercreditor agreement and security documentation (upstream guarantee with limitation wording, business pledge, receivables pledge, bank account pledge, shares pledge, etc.), including the issuance of legal opinions
  • Advising several UK insurance intermediaries in the development of their Brexit plan and the implementation thereof, i.e. assisting with the application for license with the FSMA
  • Advising Aedifica with a debt capital market transaction (€150 Mio treasury note program) arranged by Belfius Bank and BNP Paribas Fortis. The program was structured as a mix of short term and medium-term treasury notes
  • Advising a Belgian Fintech acting as liquidity provider for cryptocurrencies market. We assisted the Fintech in the drafting and negotiation of several cryptocurrencies loan agreement, taking into account the specificities and features of this new category of currency (escrow wallet, smart contract, etc)
  • Assisting one of the largest private banking institution of Switzerland in the setting up and marketing of a platform centralizing offering to 100,000 different investment funds, to be used by professional investors and local distributors around the world, for their own purpose or for the purpose of repackaging in fund of funds or unit linked policies. Our assistance related to complex investment services (MIFID) advice interrelated to alternative investment funds regulations
  • Advising a Belgian Bank during four separate securitization programmes arranged for two of the largest steel groups worldwide (EUR 150,000,000 and EUR 140,000,000), a worldwide cement group (EUR 250,000,000) and a worldwide group of maritime container transporters (EUR 51,000,000)
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Education

  • 2004 - University of Louvain-La-Neuve, UCL (Law Degree)
  • 2004 - Bar admission (Brussels, Belgium)
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Publications

  • « Equity line transactions : une nouvelle technique de financement pour les sociétés cotées ? », with V. Dirckx, Droit Bancaire et Financier, 2015/III, p.187
  • « Fusions de banques et cessions d’activités bancaires », in 20 ans de Loi bancaire, Anthémis, 2013
  • Pensions complémentaires, B. Vandervelde (aspects réglementaires et assurance-vie) with G. Chuffart, Salaires, Kluwer, 2011, 106 pages
  • « L’offre conjointe et les services financiers », in La nouvelle loi relative aux pratiques du marché et à la protection du consommateur : tout sur l’ancien et le nouveau régime, Larcier, 2010
  • « La conversion de dette en capital : un remède dans le cadre des restructurations de crédit », with Arnaud Van Oekel, Forum Financier/Droit bancaire et financier, 2009/VI
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Expertise

18/12/2017
10 ques­tions about the new Bel­gian se­cur­ity in­terests...
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Guide
June 2018
CMS in­tro­duces Private Place­ments on­line Ques­tion­naire
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News

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