Mikaela Rintakoski

Senior Associate, Member of the Finnish Bar

I advise clients in assignments concerning insolvency law. I also assist clients in questions of corporate law as part of our Corporate Governance team. I have participated in various bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings, both assisting the administrator of the estate and representing the creditors.

In addition to bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings, I have experience in voluntary debt arrangements and liquidation of companies.

Prior to joining Castrén & Snellman, I worked at another business law firm, specialising in insolvency law and dispute resolution.

I have a Master of Laws degree from the University of Helsinki, and I have also studied law at the ESADE private university in Spain.

Latest references

Life Finland Oy, a retailer of natural products, other health-related products and cosmetics, filed for bankruptcy on its own initiative in June 2025, and our attorney, counsel Elina Pesonen was appointed administrator of the bankruptcy estate. Life Finland Oy was part of the international Life Group, and its parent company Life Europe AB was declared bankrupt in Sweden in June 2025. When declared bankrupt, Life Finland Oy had over 30 operational stores and almost 170 employees across Finland. In addition to the premises of the operational stores, the company had several other leased premises, such as retail premises it was vacating as well as office and warehouse spaces. The bankruptcy estate organised clearance sales in all of the company’s stores. The shutdown of the stores and the clearance sales were efficiently carried out in approximately two weeks in cooperation with the company’s country manager, regional managers and sales staff. The clearance sales yielded a significant liquidation result, and consumers bought nearly the entire inventory. The administration of the bankruptcy estate has required expertise in many areas. The proceedings have dealt with specialised issues such as cash pooling arrangements, intellectual property, franchising agreements, employment relationships and consumer creditors. In addition, the proceedings are notably international, as the estate administrator has organised the shutdown of operations and the liquidation of assets in close cooperation with the estate administrators of the Swedish Group companies. The cooperation has included, among other things, exploring opportunities for selling the business, the sale of intangible rights and the coordination of intra-group agreements.
Case published 9.12.2025
Castrén & Snellman’s Attorney Christer Svartström acted as the administrator in the restructuring proceedings of Foodiq Oy, which began on 11 March 2024. Foodiq is a unique future food focused company that develops and produces plant and milk-based products for both the private and public sectors. The company’s largest shareholder is a Swedish investment company focusing on FoodTec, Nicoya AB. The majority of creditors approved the draft restructuring programme in expedited proceedings after restructuring proceedings that lasted just under a year. The District Court of Helsinki affirmed the restructuring programme including the one-day payment programme on 10 March 2025 and appointed Attorney Christer Svartström as the supervisor of the programme. In cooperation with the parties, they found an effective and quick restructuring solution for the company, avoiding a long-term programme and allowing the company to focus on its core business. The restructuring programme was financed by investments made by the company’s investors. At the same time, the one-day programme provided a better outcome for creditors compared to a longer programme. The implementation of the restructuring programme ended successfully on 28 March 2025.
Case published 6.5.2025
Relacom Finland Oy was declared bankrupt in 2019 upon the company’s own application. Relacom Finland Oy was one of the leading telecommunication services companies in Finland, and it had activities across Finland. The company offered, for example, installation and maintenance of telecommunication networks and power grids. When bankruptcy was declared, the company had around 400 employees. The bankruptcy proceedings were concluded in approximately three years, and the creditors approved the final settlement of accounts in December 2022. Attorney Pekka Jaatinen served as the administrator of the bankruptcy estate. After the beginning of the bankruptcy, the bankruptcy estate examined the company’s unfinished projects and finished them to the extent that was profitable. The rest of the projects were shut down in a controlled manner and handed over to the customer. Some of the projects were also socially important. The bankruptcy estate hired 112 of the company’s employees for fixed-term employment to finish projects and to ensure that the shutdown was carried out in a controlled manner. However, the bankruptcy administration did not continue the company’s business. The company’s fixed assets and inventories consisted of, among other things, various tools, equipment and several vehicles. The bankruptcy estate identified different options for efficient ways to liquidate assets, and selling was carried out in cooperation with an external liquidator. The liquidation result from finishing projects and selling the company’s movable property was significant and higher than the book value. Unsecured creditors accrued approximately 41% disbursements in the bankruptcy.
Case published 11.1.2023
Menswear retailer Brothers Clothing Oy applied for bankruptcy on its own initiative in April 2020. At the time it was declared bankrupt, the company had a total of 12 stores and about 70 employees across Finland. The bankruptcy proceedings were concluded briskly in about one and a half years, and the creditors approved the final settlement of accounts in December 2021. Attorney Pauliina Tenhunen served as the administrator of the bankruptcy estate. After bankruptcy was declared, the bankruptcy estate began clearance sales in five stores in Espoo, Vantaa, Turku, Raisio and Vaasa. The clearance sales were organised in cooperation with the company’s store staff, and the bankruptcy estate hired about 20 of the company’s employees for fixed-term employment. The liquidation result from the clearance sales was significant. Unsecured creditors accrued over 50% disbursements in the bankruptcy. In addition to insolvency experts, the team managing the bankruptcy estate included taxation and employment law experts.
Case published 18.1.2022
We advised Efima Oyj on the sale of its financial management services business to Rantalainen as part of its strategic focus on fully concentrating on the delivery of business applications as well as data and AI solutions. As a result of the transaction, customer contracts related to financial management services and 65 experts working in these services will transfer to Rantalainen. The transaction will be carried out as a transfer of business, and the experts will move to the new owner as existing employees. Efima is a Finnish digital company that supports the sustainable growth of large and mid-sized companies by streamlining their business processes and by creating competitive advantage through the innovative use of artificial intelligence and data. The company has nearly 200 experts based in Helsinki and Tampere.
Case published 12.6.2026
We advised lead investor Ugly Duckling Ventures on the EUR 6.5 million funding round of Skyfora. The round also included Eviny Ventures, LUMO Labs and EIC Fund, alongside non-dilutive funding from Business Finland. The investment will support the commercial scale-up of Skyfora’s weather intelligence solutions, the expansion of partnerships with telecom operators, forecasting providers and meteorological institutions, and the continued growth of the team. Skyfora is a Finnish company developing high-resolution weather data solutions using patented technology that extracts atmospheric data from GNSS receivers embedded in existing infrastructure, such as telecom networks. By unlocking previously untapped data sources, Skyfora enables the next generation of AI-driven weather forecasting and supports improved decision-making across weather-sensitive industries. Ugly Duckling Ventures is a Copenhagen-based venture capital firm focused on early-stage Nordic B2B technology companies, with an emphasis on medtech, resilience tech and business services.
Case published 10.6.2026
castren snellman general atlantic iceye
We advised General Atlantic as the lead investor on ICEYE’s EUR 1 billion series F funding round, valuing the company at over EUR 10 billion. ICEYE raised EUR 450 million (USD 520 million) in a primary Series F funding round led by General Atlantic. Additional investors included Solidium, Tesi, Varma, Ilmarinen, Lifeline Ventures, Nokia, Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and TCV. Together with a secondary placement, the total fundraising exceeds EUR 1 billion. ICEYE is the world leader in sovereign intelligence from space, providing continuous monitoring capabilities to detect and respond to changes in any location on Earth. The company operates the world’s largest and most advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite constellation. General Atlantic is a leading global investor with more than four and a half decades of experience providing capital and strategic support for over 885 companies throughout its history. As of March 31, 2026, General Atlantic manages approximately USD 126 billion in assets across its investment strategies. We advised General Atlantic on this transaction in collaboration with the international law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
Case published 9.6.2026
We advised Oomi Solar Oy on the sale of a solar power park and battery energy storage project to Tuulipolar Oy. The transaction concerned a 24 MWp solar power plant and a 36 MW / 70 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) to be constructed in Tornio. Tuulipolar Oy will act as the owner and operator of the plant, while Oomi Solar Oy will be responsible for its design and construction. The project will form the world’s northernmost industrial hybrid power plant, contributing to Finland’s green energy transition by increasing renewable energy production and electricity storage capacity in Northern Finland. The hybrid solution enables optimization of production as well as active participation in electricity markets and reserve services, improving the project’s profitability and supporting the balance of the electricity system year-round. Electricity production from the hybrid plant is expected to begin in 2028. Oomi Solar Oy is a Finnish renewable energy expert with experience from nearly 200 MW of installed solar capacity. The company helps businesses and communities accelerate the green transition by offering comprehensive solutions, including solar power plants, energy storage systems, and related lifecycle services from project development to maintenance. Oomi Solar Oy employs more than 20 energy professionals and delivers solar power projects across Finland. The company’s vision is to be Finland’s most desired partner for solar energy and energy solutions.
Case published 5.6.2026