Marjolein is a partner at Eversheds Sutherland’s Competition, Trade & Foreign Investment practice in Brussels. Marjolein practices in the areas of EU and Belgian competition law. She has over 15 years of experience advising on merger control, competition investigations and sector inquiries, and state aid. Marjolein also advises on foreign direct investment and national security control as well as competition law related questions in the fields of ESG, patent licensing, and routes to market. Marjolein has represented clients before the EU, UK and Belgian competition authorities and courts. She is qualified in Belgium and New York and registered as a foreign lawyer in the UK.

Marjolein has worked for multinationals across different sectors including, energy and commodities, financial services, manufacturing, media, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, technology and the internet of things, and transport and logistics.

Marjolein frequently publishes and speaks at conferences on key competition law developments and reforms. She has been particularly invested in the questions raised in relation to digital developments, including the related regulatory changes, and the interplay between competition law and sustainability.

Marjolein has been recognized and recommended over several years as a leading lawyer for competition law in legal directories such as Chambers Europe since 2019, The Legal 500 EMEA since 2022, and Euromoney since 2018. Marjolein was also named a “future leader” and “global thought leader under 45” in competition law by Who’s Who Legal in 2022 and 2023.

Steve Thomas is General Counsel at Kelkoo Group, an ecommerce marketing platform (under the brands Kelkoo, LeGuide and Ciao) connecting both publishers and merchants with consumers through qualified traffic. Kelkoo provides monetization opportunities for both online shops and retailers, with over 20 years of experience in the digital sphere.

With extensive experience in the digital and technology sectors, Steve has overall responsibility for legal and compliance issues in 40 countries and across the Kelkoo, LeGuide and Ciao businesses. Based out of the company’s London office, Steve has a key role in advising on both strategic and operational matters across the Group.

Prior to joining Kelkoo Group, Steve occupied a variety of positions for Colart, Bristows and Simmons & Simmons.

Ms. Xanthi G. Bitzidou is a Senior Greek lawyer with an extensive experience in EU and Greek competition law, regulation and litigation. Her 20+ years professional practice focuses in the areas of TMT sector, Competition law, Tech law, Digital markets regulation and IP law.

Ms. Bitzidou is a Senior lawyer at the legal directory of E.E.T.T (Hellenic Telecommunications and Posts Commission) since 2005. She has successfully handled numerous Greek/EU competition law cases (both merger and antitrust procedures) in the Electronic Communications and Postal markets. She has also been extensively involved in the whole spectrum of Electronic Communications regulation, in digital markets regulation (and compliance issues), as well as in a number of complex policy issues, in close cooperation with national regulators (NRAs), competition authorities, ministries, EU bodies (ex. BEREC, GSMA), the EU Commission and private stakeholders. A Greek qualified lawyer, she holds a D.E.S in EU Law (Belgium) and an MPhil (UK) in Competition law and the TMT sector. Prior to joining E.E.T.T, Ms. Bitzidou has worked in Brussels, where she practiced EU, regulatory and competition law. Ms. Bitzidou participates frequently in digital markets and competition law seminars and conferences and she has also published in the TMT and competition law areas. Ms. Bitzidou speaks four languages.

Kay Jebelli is Senior Director for Europe at Chamber of Progress, representing a broad cross-section of technology industry players on a wide range of policy issues. Prior to moving to policy, Kay worked for over a decade as a competition lawyer in private practice, in the European Commission Directorate-General for Competition, in academia, and as Senior Legal Counsel at a leading UK media and communications company. Before starting his legal career, Kay worked as a computer engineer.