Finance Monthly Global Awards 2018 Edition

country Areas of Expertise Steinfeld Recht puts a particular focus on fraud. We specialise in “business fraud”, tax fraud as well as ICO and cryptocurrencies fraud. “Business fraud”: maintaining a business in Germany is more complex than most entrepreneurs and particularly VCs think. There is a reason why Germany is considered to be the motherland of bureaucracy. Unfortunately, a business person’s ignorance is no excuse. Moreover, the German courts find it easier to be stricter with non-residents than with locals when sanctioning non-compliance with business rules. It is therefore crucial to be well represented in those cases and to have a legal representation that is able to build a bridge between the client and the authorities. Tax fraud: Albeit clearly a subsection of the business fraud, tax fraud has earned its spot in the limelight since German prosecutors have made it their goal to pursue certain cases of tax fraud with increasing vigour in recent years. Another reason for this are the damages, connected with these cases, the German authorities will usually try to reclaim. VAT-fraud is the most common allegation with usually the highest claims connected to it. Understanding the implications of such criminal proceedings and having all the experts at hand to prevent any repercussions is how we help our clients. ICO and cryptocurrencies fraud: Being situated in the digital world does not exonerate anyone from complying with analogue laws. Be it on the ICOs or on the investor’s side or be it among members of any network. The problematic bit is not only to identify the alleged perpetrators. Usually the biggest obstacle is to discover the (allegedly) fraudulent activity by analysing and subsequently understanding the business model / scheme at hand. Unfortunately, most actors in this area, be it legislators, authorities, investors or users, have little to no understanding of the technology involved which makes it particularly hard to develop a factual based strategy. At Steinfeld Recht we put particular focus on staying attuned to the mayor developments in technology and its legal implications. Finance Monthly Global Awards 2018 www.finance-monthly.com 15 GERMANY