Anne-Sophie Vankemmelbeke

Anne-Sophie advises a broad range of corporates and financial institutions on their strategic corporate finance transactions. She is a versatile finance lawyer, covering the full spectrum of finance, ranging from corporate lending, acquisition finance and real estate finance to the full suite of debt and hybrid capital market products as well as structured finance (including securitisations).

Anne-Sophie is highly valued by clients for her solution-oriented, hands-on approach and technical expertise.

She has been recognised as a “Next Generation Partner” in banking, finance, and capital markets for Belgium by The Legal500.

Work highlights

Anne-Sophie has advised on a wide range of strategic corporate finance transactions, including:

• Solvay: advising on the financing aspects of the strategic spin-off of Solvay’s €6bn specialty business to Syensqo through the set-up and implementation of cross-border EUR and USD bond liability management exercises and new capital structures, involving successful transfer and repayment of over €4bn bond debt, and implementation of €8.4bn in aggregate financings (including bridge to bond, syndicated and bilateral RCFs, term loan facilities, and CP programmes) and the €1.5bn inaugural bond issue following the spin-off.
• Vandemoortele: advising on various strategic financings, including for the acquisition of Banneton Bakery and Dolciaria Acquaviva as well as the refinancing of their existing revolving facility.
• KBC Group: advising on the issue of new AT1 securities for a total amount of €750,000,000 and concurrent cash tender offer for its outstanding €1,000,000,000 undated deeply subordinated AT1 securities.
• Elia Group: advising on the issue of €500m 5.850% fixed rate reset undated perp-NC5.25 subordinated securities and the concurrent tender offer of its outstanding hybrid bonds.
• Belfius: advising Belfius Bank on the establishment of a new €15bn SME loan securitisation programme and €8bn inaugural issuance thereunder by Mercurius Funding.
• DPG Media: advising on the bank financing of the proposed acquisition of RTL Nederland and various private placements.
• Elia Group: advising on the financing for the acquisition of a stake in EnergyRe Giga Projects, a subsidiary of EnergyRe, through its subsidiary WindGrid USA.
• D'Ieteren: advising Nayarit Participations on the financing aspects of the consolidation of the family shareholding in D'Ieteren Group, involving a €2bn buy-out and a recapitalisation of D'Ieteren Group.
• ING Lease: advising on a cross-border master lease facility agreement for the Heisterkamp Group.
• Etex Group: advising Etex on their inaugural US private placement and concurrent refinancing of their cross-border bank facilities.

Anne-Sophie has been a Partner in the Corporate and Finance Group since 2023.

She joined Linklaters in 2011. In 2015 she was seconded to the Linklaters Equity and Debt Capital Markets Group in London.

Anne-Sophie holds a Magister Juris (LL.M) from the University of Cambridge and a Master of Laws from the University of Ghent.

She works in English, Dutch, and French.