Antti Vepsä Brings New Fund Expertise to Castrén & Snellman’s PE&VC Team

Antti is joining the firm from OP Financial Group, where he has worked extensively on fund-related projects. Antti has researched the regulation of investment funds, particularly foreign fund regulation and market practices. He is currently working on a doctoral dissertation at the University of Tampere on the regulation of funds established as variable capital investment companies.

‘I am looking forward to working on assignments at C&S. I anticipate that my skills and research findings will be of great benefit to the fund projects of the firm’s clients. In the current market situation, alternative asset categories have raised their profile: new and innovative products are being developed and there is motivation to offer them to a wider pool of investors. On the other hand, there is a will to develop the regulation of funds established as variable capital investment companies, as we saw in the project to reform fund regulation that ran from 2016 to 2019. I believe that this matter will move forward in Finland in the next few years. When that happens, our team will be well placed to provide solutions to our clients’, Antti says.

‘Antti’s extensive experience on both the fund manager and investor sides supplements our team’s fund advisory resources and our ability to serve an extensive clientele well in the diversifying field of fund projects. The demand for our services has grown significantly over the past few years. Antti is an excellent addition to our team’, says Partner Jarno Tanhuanpää, the head of our Private Equity & Venture Capital service.

Among other things, Antti will focus on establishing alternative investment funds, fund due diligence projects, secondary market trading in limited partnership interests and other collective investment projects. Antti’s versatile and extensive experience as an in-house lawyer positions him well to support clients in fund-related product development, management, taxation and sustainable investment matters.

‘We are at an exciting place in sustainable finance. Investors expect concrete actions and proof that they have been taken as well as systematic measurement of impacts. The Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority is already requiring funds to clarify sustainability documentation and the authority’s interpretations have yet to become established. Helping clients in this dynamic situation is an interesting challenge’, Antti says.