Avinash Balendran

Mr. Balendran’s experience includes advising:

Technology and General Commercial

• A leading publishing group in the MENA region with various technology agreements
• A large information technology services company headquartered in the Middle East on a variety of services agreements in relation to its digital health platform
• A healthcare company on a variety of commercial agreements regarding the construction of the largest hospital in the Middle East
• An investment arm of one of the largest funds in the world with various commercial agreements, e.g. consultancy agreements, framework agreements and technology agreements with market-leading software providers
• A global payment solutions provider with an interim services agreement
• A number of startups with acquiring finance from leading venture capital firms in the MENA region and remedial actions necessary to secure such financing
• A number of leading venture capital firms in the MENA region with its financings of startups and the identification of intellectual property issues
• A Chinese multinational internet technology company on various technology-related legal and commercial matters
• A commercial and retail bank established in Saudi Arabia, in relation to the drafting and negotiation of a framework services agreement and license agreement worth approximately USD 11 million with a large Indian technology company
• A US social media conglomerate on its acquisition of a service for sharing crowdsourced geotagged photos

Privacy and Regulatory

• A global telecommunications services company with its internal measures to ensure GDPR compliance
• A Saudi Arabian start-up with its cross-border compliance issues and restoration on the Google Play Store
• A multinational bank in relation to its GDPR compliance project
• A leading global accountancy and consultancy firm on its global privacy impact assessment (PIA) process to minimize privacy and security risks, and achieve compliance with global information laws for new systems and tools
• A Canadian pension firm on the data privacy, commercial and cyber security risks associated with its acquisition of a FinTech provider
• A number of private equity firms with their commercial, IP, IT and data privacy due diligence during an auction process
• An open banking platform on its compliance strategy in the MENA region

In addition to his practice, Mr. Balendran speaks publicly and delivers training to clients on technology and commercial law issues. Mr. Balendran’s recent speaking engagements include:

• Discussing IP-related issues in the UAE and data privacy concerns at Womena (a platform that aims to support the MENA entrepreneurship ecosystem)
• Delivering client training on software commercialization, technology procurements, data privacy, cyber security, IP, and confidentiality