Biography
Petr Šmerkl, a counsel of the Prague office, is a member of the Debt Finance and Capital Markets Practice Groups. Petr regularly provides advisory services to both international and local lenders, investors and companies in connection with international and domestic bank financing transactions. In addition, he represents both underwriters and issuers in connection with a range of debt and equity capital market products.
Over the past years, he has been an essential member of the team, contributing to many of the major banking and capital markets matters handled by the Prague office.
Petr also focuses on projects related to renewable energy across Central & Eastern Europe (CEE) and Southeastern Europe (SEE). He holds an LLM degree from University College London in the United Kingdom.
Experience
Petr's experience includes advising the following clients:
Bank Finance
- Rohlik Group on a guaranteed loan of up to €90 million from the European Investment Bank (EIB) as part of its 'Scale-Up' initiative, which aims to support rapidly growing technology startups in Europe.
- Česká exportní banka and Komerční banka in connection with ECA covered financing of construction of five regional airports in Senegal. The transaction required a deep knowledge of and experience of legal issues relating to bankability of complex EPC contracts involving a significant number of suppliers as well as to different ECA products, in particular the buyers' credit insurance and insurance of payments under advance payment guarantees.
- ING Bank and other MLAs in connection with the financing in excess of CZK 28 billion of a high-profile public-to-private acquisition by a regional sponsor.
- the lenders in connection with the proposed financing for the development and construction of a wind farm with a nominal capacity of up to 95.5 MW and related activities adjacent to the Kovacica wind farm project in Vojvodina, Serbia.
- a club of eight international commercial banks and international financial institutions in connection with a financing of up to €291 million for the construction and development of a wind farm with a nominal capacity including its second stage of the 461 MW in Romania.
- Erste Group Bank, Nova Ljubljanska banka, Nova Ljubljanska banka Prishtina and EBRD in connection with Euler-Hermes-backed financing of the development and construction of three 35 MW wind power plants, located in the Mitrovica Municipality of northern Kosovo.
- Erste Group Bank in connection with providing long-term debt financing to support the construction, operation and maintenance of a 36 MW wind farm located near the village Bogoslovec in North Macedonia.
- Erste Group Bank, Česká spořitelna, UniCredit, UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia, Société Générale and Komerční banka in connection with financing provided to CTP Group. At an amount of €1.9 million, this was one of the largest real estate financings in the CEE region at the time.
Capital Markets
- EMMA Finance CZ and EMMA Finance SK, special purpose vehicles of private equity firm EMMA Capital, in connection with the establishment of the first Czech-law-governed dual-issuer CZK 7.5 billion note programme and issuances thereunder, including the issuance of CZK 2 billion 6.35 per cent. notes due 2031 by EMMA Finance CZ and the debut issuances of CZK 2.5 billion 6.00 per cent. notes due 2030 by Emma Finance CZ, and €50 million 5.25 per cent. notes due 2030 by Emma Finance SK.
- ENERGO-PRO on several standalone issuances, including the issuance of €700 million 8.00 per cent. guaranteed notes due 2030, offered under Rule 144A and Regulation S, and a subsequent €50 million tap issuance. The notes are admitted to trading on the regulated market of Euronext Dublin. The transaction was awarded the "Deal of the Year – Czechia" at the Global Banking & Markets CEE, CIS & Türkiye Awards 2025.
- the arranger and the dealers on the establishment of €5 billion international mortgage covered bonds programme of Komerční banka, one of the leading banks operating in the Czech Republic, on the updates of the programme, and several issuances thereunder, including the issuance of €750 million 3.250 per cent. fixed-rate mortgage covered bonds due 2031, which carry a AAA rating by Fitch and the European Covered Bond (Premium) label.
- UniCredit Bank as arranger in connection with the re-establishment of the €10 billion mortgage covered bond programme of UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia, all subsequent updates of the programme and several issuances thereunder, including the issuance of €500 million 2.625 per cent. covered bonds due 2030.
- acted as transaction counsel on standalone issuances of the European pharmacy chain Dr. Max, including the issuance of CZK 1.25 billion retail domestic bond and the issuance of CZK 5 billion 8.5 per cent. guaranteed retail notes, which marked the first-time listed retail bond issue on the Czech capital market by the Dr. Max Group.
- Energetický a průmyslový holding, a leading pan-European energy utility, on the establishment of its €3 billion EMTN program and on several issuances thereunder, including the inaugural issue of €500 million 5.875 per cent. guaranteed green notes due 2029 (the transaction was awarded the "Debut Corporate Bond Deal of the Year and Energy Transition Deal of the Year" at the Global Banking & Markets CEE, CIS & Türkiye Awards 2024) and the previous issue of €500 million 6.651 per cent. guaranteed notes due 2028.
- P3 Group as issuer on the establishment of its €5 billion EMTN programme, its annual updates, and on all subsequent issuances under the programme, including the issuance of €350 million 3.375 per cent. green notes due 2031 under the programme.
- České dráhy, the Czech national railway operator, as issuer, in connection with numerous standalone issuances, including the issuance of €500 million 3.750 per cent. senior unsecured notes due 2031.
Rising Star (National) by IFLR Europe Awards 2025
J. Harašta, M. Kočí & P. Šmerkl (2010): Virtual Money in China, Masaryk University Journal of Law and Technology, Volume 4, No. 2, pp. 191-204.