Katri is the head of TRINITI’s Banking & Finance Department, that has made a remarkable development leap in recent years covering several new practice areas. The members of Banking & Finance Department help clients to apply for licenses from Estonian Financial Supervision Authority (EFSA) and Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) in various fields under supervision (incl. credit providing as well as payment solutions and crypto-currency related business, etc).
Katri is specialized in anti-money laundering (AML) requirements and internal procedures starting from banks, creditors and fintechs leading to tax advisers, providers of accounting services and real estate agencies. Katri also has long-term experience in field of financial accounting and she is accepting new challenges related to ESG and Sustainability matters, incl. applicability of EU Taxonomy; etc. TRINITI’s Banking & Finance Department helps the clients to achieve their goals – to change the world!
Some examples of Katri’s fintech clients:
- SALV Technologies (successful start-up, who offers AML platforms to banks and fintechs world-wide for combating criminals and complying with AML requirements);
- Bankish (tailored core-banking software solution for professional credit providers).
Among other assignments Katri has established and is teaching the first AML course in Tartu University (the oldest university in Estonia) training the compliance officers for banks, fintech companies, etc. She has also participated in the preparation of the Estonian state money laundering and terrorist financing risk assessment for the year 2021.
In 2021 Katri has also been recognized for her great contribution to the development of FinanceEstonia – a financial sector representative organisation with the aim of supporting Estonian financial sector development and innovation and the export of financial services. Since 2019 Katri is the head of FinanceEstonia’s Good Practice Committee of Creditors, which issues Good Practice Labels to Estonian creditors proving the high standard of market players.
Katri’s expertise has been noted internationally by IFLR1000, Chambers and Legal500 in Banking&Finance and FinTech categories.
During Katri’s nearly 20 years of law practice she has advised both Estonian and foreign banks and creditors, successfully representing them in disputes arising from the transfer of loan portfolios, various credit agreements (incl. leasing and factoring) and collateral contracts as well as other financial instruments. Clients see her as an attorney, who is orientated in expanding the court practice and finding solutions even when it seems impossible.
Her clients in disbutes include for example:
- UniCredit Leasing (current business name: Citadele Leasing)
- Nordea Finance Estonia (current trademark: Luminor)
- Katri has successfully litigated cryptocurrency disputes, including representation in the first ICO case in EU.
At the same time Katri is also experienced in resolving large-scale cases involving compensation for damage either caused by alleged transfer of business, breach of contractual obligation or by tort. Clients find her to be an irreplaceable attorney in cases that require long-term commitment and going deep in large number of files and evidence.
Her remarkable experiences in that field of disbutes are for example:
- representation of Transpordi Varahaldus (a state-owned asset management company for aircraft) in court case where the former employees of Estonian national airline Estonian Air (in bankrupt) sued another airline Nordic Aviation Group and Transpordi Varahaldus claiming the fulfilment of the obligations on Estonian Air due to alleged transfer of entity;
- representation of Tallinna Vesi (a company being responsible for water and sewage matter for the entire capital of the Republic of Estonia) in lawsuits concerning the alleged unjustified price of domestic water;
- representation of Tallinna Sadam (Port of Tallinn is the biggest port authority in Estonia) in litigation with Tallink (the leading provider of high-quality mini-cruise and passenger transport services in the northern Baltic Sea region) regarding alleged abuse of a dominant position; etc.
- Katri’s highlights are also successful court victories in disputes related to real estate, construction and energy sector (representing clients such as SW Energia, Remet, Ehitus5ECO).