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Philipp Melzer
Partner

Philipp Melzer

Rechtsanwalt

Languages
  • German
  • English
Social media

As a very experienced banking and finance lawyer, Philipp Melzer advises issuers, underwriters and existing shareholders on IPOs, capital increases and secondary offerings. His expertise is also often sought after in the context of bonds (esp. Green Bonds), debt issuance programmes and structured finance, such as asset-backed securities and derivatives. He heads the CMS debt capital markets (DCM) practice and together with Andreas Zanner, he also heads the CMS equity capital markets (ECM) practice in Frankfurt and is a regular speaker on topics regarding ESG compliance and capital market law.

Prior to finishing his law studies in 1998 and completing his lawyers‘ training in Freiburg in 2001, Philipp trained as a banker and financial adviser with Kreissparkasse Ravensburg (until 1994). He joined CMS in 2001 and became a partner in 2008.

Awards & Recognitions
01
  • Quote
    Listed for Capital Market Law
    Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2025 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
  • Quote
    Listed for Banking and Finance
    Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2025 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Global, 2025
  • Quote
    „Philipp Melzer: Sehr erfahrener ECM-Partner, fachlich hervorragend und menschlich angenehm, bleibt auch in schwierigen Situation immer ruhig und besonnen.“, Mandant
    The Legal 500 Deutschland, 2025
  • Quote
    "Philipp Melzer is diligent, hands on, pragmatic and commercial.", client
    Chambers Global, Chambers Germany, 2025
  • Quote
    "Philipp Melzer is a great support. He is super responsive and knowledgeable.", client
    Chambers Global, Chambers Germany, 2025
  • Quote
    "Underwriters and issuers mandate Philipp Melzer for his expertise in IPOs, private placements and base prospectus updates."
    Chambers Germany, 2025
  • Quote
    „sehr kundenorientiert, erfreul. pragmat. u. unprätentiös, sehr guter Teamplayer, bindet Juniors hervorragend ein. Wir sind sehr zufrieden“, Mandant
    JUVE Handbuch, 2024/2025
  • Quote
    „Oft empfohlen“ für Bank- und Finanzrecht
    JUVE Handbuch, 2024/2025
  • Quote
    Listed for Banking and Finance
    Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2024 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Europe, 2024
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Global, 2024
  • Quote
    ‘Philipp Melzer: Very good specialist knowledge, refers to colleagues in a timely manner if necessary, pleasantly unpretentious, humane and value-based actions, client-oriented (often recognises our needs before they are clear to us), coordinates his (interdisciplinary) team excellently.’, client
    The Legal 500 EMEA, 2024
  • Quote
    ‘Philipp Melzer is one of the best lawyers I've worked with. He is a great team player who provides in-depth knowledge and a client-oriented approach. He is reachable anytime if necessary, as well as prudent and calm under pressure.‘, client
    Chambers Europe, 2024
  • Quote
    ‘Philipp Melzer is one of the best lawyers I've worked with. He is a great team player who provides in-depth knowledge and a client-oriented approach. He is reachable anytime if necessary, as well as prudent and calm under pressure.‘, client
    Chambers Global, 2024
  • Quote
    ‘He has very good industry expertise and always remains calm and deliberate, even in difficult situations.‘, client
    Chambers Europe, 2024
  • Quote
    „Oft empfohlen“ für Bank- und Finanzrecht
    JUVE Handbuch, 2023/2024
  • Quote
    "Philipp Melzer has a high level of expertise and remains calm even in difficult situations." "He has longstanding experience." "He can work especially well with the Mittelstand; it’s a great fit.", client
    Chambers Europe, 2023
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Europe, 2023
  • Quote
    Listed as leading individual
    Chambers Europe, 2023
  • Quote
    Listed for Banking and Finance
    Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2023 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioners
    Chambers Global, 2023
  • Quote
    "He can work especially well with the Mittelstand; it's a great fit.", client
    Chambers Global, 2023
  • Quote
    "He has longstanding experience.", client
    Chambers Global, 2023
  • Quote
    "Philipp Melzer has a high level of expertise and remains calm even in difficult situations." client
    Chambers Global, 2023
  • Quote
    "outstanding performance, very solution-oriented, well-structured and objective, even in complex issues", client
    JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2022 (GCLF)
  • Quote
    "Recommended" for Equity Issues and IPOs
    JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2022 (GCLF)
  • Quote
    "Clients appreciate his knowledge as well as his work ethic and style, stating: 'He works through a lot in the background and is a very calm and modest person who does not play to the gallery'."
    Chambers Europe, 2021
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Global, 2021
  • Quote
    Listed for Banking and Finance
    Deutschlands beste Anwälte 2021 – Handelsblatt in Kooperation mit Best Lawyers
  • Quote
    "Recommended" for Equity Issues and IPOs
    JUVE German Commercial Law Firms 2021 (GCLF)
  • Quote
    Listed as Leading Individual
    Chambers Europe, 2022
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Europe, 2022
  • Quote
    One client appreciates Philipp Melzer’s "excellent approach and knowledge. He is a very pragmatic and business-savvy lawyer."
    Chambers Europe, 2022
  • Quote
    "Excellent approach and knowledge. He is a very pragmatic and business-savvy lawyer.", client
    Chambers Global, 2022
  • Quote
    Listed as Leading Individual
    Chambers Global, 2022
  • Quote
    Listed as notable practitioner
    Chambers Global, 2022
  • Quote
    "Philipp Melzer has very sound capital market experience and is looking for pragmatic solutions in the interest of everyone involved.", client
    The Legal 500 EMEA, 2022
  • Quote
    „gut umsetzbare Lösungen; bleibt auch in Situationen großen Drucks ruhig“, Mandant
    JUVE Handbuch, 2022/2023
  • Quote
    „Oft empfohlen“ für Bank- und Finanzrecht
    JUVE Handbuch, 2022/2023

Relevant experience

Equity capital markets (ECM)

  • Advising Porsche AG on its IPO at Frankfurt Stock Exchange
  • Advising INDUS Holding AG on structuring and implementing its capital increase
  • Advising NFON AG on its IPO at Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on its capital increase
  • Advising Capital Stage AG (now Encavis AG) on the acquisition of CHORUS Clean Energy AG as part of a share swap
  • Advising major shareholder Mayfair Beteiligungsfonds II on IPO of Vapiano SE
  • Advising Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG on an EUR 3.7 billion capital increase as well as the company‘s EUR 1.45 billion IPO

Debt capital markets (DCM)

  • Advising Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG on the placement of three benchmark bonds, sustainability-linked loans and blockchain-based promissory note issues
  • Advising APCOA Parking on the issuance of a senior secured bond with an aggregate principal amount of EUR 685 million
  • Advising hep global GmbH on the structuring and issuance of a 6.5% Green Bond 2021/2026 with a volume of EUR 25 million
  • Advising Encavis AG on the placement of perpetual subordinated bonds without a fixed term worth EUR 250 million that grant the right to conversion into ordinary bearer shares in Encavis AG.
  • Advising BNP Paribas as arranger on establishing a issuance programme of constitutionally covered bonds of up to a volume of EUR 40 billion and advising on their yearly updates

Publications

  • ESG-Compliance: EU-Regulierung stellt Unternehmen vor komplexe Herausforderungen, Compliance 2021,8, Co-Author: Dr. Anna-Maja Schaefer
  • "SPACs – Special Purpose Acquisition Companies" in "Praxishandbuch Finanzierung von Innovationen", by Christian Hoppe, SpringerGabler, December 2021, Co-Author: Dr. Jacob Siebert
  • Börsengang, in Bochmann/Scheller/Prütting (Hrsg.), Münchener Handbuch des Gesellschaftsrechts, Band 9: Recht der Familienunternehmen, C.H.Beck Verlag, 6. Auflage 2021
  • Die EU treibt die Transformation der Realwirtschaft mit ihrer Sustainable Finance Strategie voran; Börse München, 20.07.2021
  • SPACs - Alternativer Weg an die Börse auf dem Vormarsch, Deutsche Börse Newsletter: Capital Market Insight, 29.03.2021
  • SPACs are back: Wie die Wirtschaftskanzlei CMS sie sieht, Institutional Money (institutional-money.com), 05.03.2021
  • Spacs – Ein alternativer Weg an die Börse?, deutsche-startups.de, 03.03.2021
  • "Direct Listing von Aktien - Spotifys Börsengang als Blaupause für deutsche Unternehmen?", GoingPublic Magazin, 05/18, p. 30
  • "Bonitätsanleihen – Verkaufsverbot an Privatkunden?", finanzwelt 05/2016, p. 62 f.
  • "Hohe Strafen drohen; Neues Gesetz erschwert Kapitalmarkttransaktionen", Markt und Mittelstand, July 2016, p. 36
  • "Strengere Regeln zum Marktmissbrauch – was ist noch erlaubt?", interview FINANCE-TV, http://www.finance-magazin.de/finance-tv/strengere-regeln-zum-marktmissbrauch-was-ist-noch-erlaubt-1382121/, 27 June 2016
  • "Nicht ohne Sprengkraft – Marktmissbrauchsverordnung", finanzwelt 02/2016, p. 52
  • "Neue Finanzberichterstattung 2016", DER PLATOW Brief - Recht, No 34, 23 March 2016, p. 5
  • "New financial reporting rules of real estate companies listed on the stock exchange market", Property Magazine, March 2016 p. 50f.
  • „Alternativen zum Bankkredit – Was bei Mittelstandsanleihen und Schuldscheindarlehen zu beachten ist“, Der Mittelstand 4/2013, p. 36 f
  • Liability of celebrities in case of promotional statements in prospectus accompanying publications, Annotation to OLG Karlsruhe 6 U 155/07 (together with Dr. Stefan Ueding), EWiR 2010, p. 523 ff
  • Zum Begriff des Finanztermingeschäfts, Zeitschrift für Bank- und Kapitalmarktrecht 2003, p. 366 f

Lectures list

  • "Special Purpose Acquisition Company – Is an old friend returning to Germany?" – Webinar Deutsche Börse, 30.03.2021
  • "Green and Sustainable Finance – Green Bonds" – 24.09.2020
  • „Kapitalmarktfinanzierung in der Corona-Krise" – Webinar Deutsche Börse, 18.06.2020

Education

  • 1999 - 2001: Trainee lawyer in Freiburg
  • 1994 - 1998: Law studies at the University of Freiburg
  • 1992 - 1994: Training as a banker and financial advisor with Kreissparkasse Ravensburg
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