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Luciana Griebel

Luciana is recommended by Legal 500 for upper mid-market and premium M&A transactions. Her practice is international and she regularly:

  • represents leading life sciences and technology companies in some of their most important transactions; and
  • assists clients with corporate governance, compliance, and other matters.

Luciana was recently seconded to a mobile-first games powerhouse, gaining valuable in-house experience. Previously, Luciana spent six months working in the legal department of a global pharmaceutical company.

Luciana’s pro bono work includes advising charities on a range of corporate matters, including SolarAid, a charity focused on the development of renewable energy technologies in Africa and South America and Barnardo’s (the UK’s leading children’s charity).

Luciana serves on Covington’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and supports the work of the Public Service Committee. She chaired the Associate Advisory Committee for two years, representing the interests of Covington’s associates across the firm.

Luciana is the Editor of Deal Points, the publication of the M&A Committee of the American Bar Association (ABA), and serves as the Vice Chair of the International M&A Subcommittee of the ABA.

Technology equity markets took a sharp turn in the last two months of Q1 2022, with S&P Technology Index reaching to over 18% in the red in mid-March, before closing the quarter at 7% off.  In the last month, across all sectors, Russia’s attack on Ukraine has rattled markets and dented investor appetite amid increased volatility and uncertainty.  The decline in valuations is being impacted by the combined headwinds of rising inflation and interest rates, as well as geopolitical uncertainty. 

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered an unprecedented phenomenon: global technology firms responded to the invasion by suspending or terminating business operations, effectively self-sanctioning beyond regulatory requirements, often at great expense to bottom lines.  This trend will likely continue – in 2022 decisions about where to invest and who to accept investment from will be driven by ethical concerns, as well as the shifting geopolitical risks.  However, as we will see in this article, many tech businesses struggle to fully abandon their presence in Russia.

This article highlights some of the ways in which the Ukraine crisis is changing tech M&A.

Expanded scope of Due Diligence

As tech companies embark on M&A deals, proactive and effective risk management will be more essential than ever.  Enhanced focus on these issues is likely to translate to expansion of transaction timelines.Continue Reading Ukraine Crisis:  Changing M&A Transactions for Technology Companies