Mr. Elmer "Billy" Serrano’s solid experience and entrepreneurial approach mark his place as a leading legal expert not only in the Philippines but also in the region. The year 2022 marks a milestone in his career as he founded his own firm, SERRANO LAW.

His strong M&A experience spans three decades, having advised and provided strategic advice and solutions on several of the largest and most notable  mergers and acquisitions across a wide range industries, strongest in the financial, banking, shipping and gaming sectors. His practice focuses on projects, debt and equity offerings, acquisitions and joint ventures. His career highlights include an instrumental role in the historic merger that created BDO Unibank, Inc. He now regularly represents BDO and its subsidiaries in all its M&A, capital and debt transactions, notably the largest single peso bond issuance and the biggest equity capital market transaction by a Philippine corporate.

Mr. Serrano has been awarded Asia Best Lawyer by the International Financial Law Review (IFLR) for Banking and Finance, Capital Markets, and Mergers & Acquisitions, one of only two exclusively recognized lawyers in the Philippines since 2020.  This comes after being consistently recognized as a Highly Regarded-Leading Lawyer in the same fields by IFLR 1000.

He is also recognized as an elite Leading Individual by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific and is named Recommended Lawyer in various fields of practice.

Mr. Serrano was also named Client Choice Award: Philippine Lawyer of the Year (Honorable Mention) in the 2023 asialaw Awards.

Prior to his private legal practice, Mr. Serrano was a senior officer of BDO Unibank, handling investment banking, corporate finance and M&A. He was also an officer of Equitable PCI Bank, Inc.

Managing Partner

Mr. Serrano holds a Juris Doctor degree from the Ateneo de Manila University and a BS Legal Management degree from the same university. He is a Certified Associate Treasury Professional and was among the top graduates of the Trust Institute of the Philippines in 2001.