SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan

Banking, Finance & Securities; Special Projects

Jose Florante M. Pamfilo is a partner in  SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan. He is a member of the firm’s Special Projects Department and Banking, Finance and Securities Department. He was recently recognized by The Legal 500 as a next generation lawyer for banking and finance.

Mr. Pamfilo has a diverse practice that spans various aspects of corporate and commercial law.

In the mergers and acquisitions space, he has acted for both buyers and sellers, in asset sale transactions and share sale transactions, involving private as well as public companies. He has assisted foreign investors structure their investments in areas such as energy, retail, financial services and real estate development.

In the financing space, he has acted for both lenders and borrowers in local and cross-border loan transactions, including in acquisition financing, project financing and commercial lending. He has worked on issuances of debt securities and equity-linked securities.

In the banking and financial services sector, he has advised foreign and local banks and non-bank financial institutions on various issues relating to the offering of financial services in the Philippines, and has provided assistance in regulatory investigations conducted by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (the Philippine central bank). He has worked on mergers and acquisitions transactions involving universal, commercial, thrift and rural banks, financing companies, stock brokerage companies and insurance companies.

In connection with his international trade law practice, he acted as counsel for the Philippine distilled spirits industry in a GATT dispute involving the Republic of the Philippines before the Appellate Body and dispute settlement panel of the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. 

Mr. Pamfilo worked previously for the Ateneo School of Government as Legal Specialist and Research Fellow and volunteered as Legal Officer for the Palawan NGO Network, Inc. and the Environmental Legal Assistance Center – Palawan.

English and Tagalog

Mr. Pamfilo earned his Bachelor of Science in Management (1998, Honors program) from Ateneo de Manila University and his Bachelor of Laws (2002, cum laude and class valedictorian) from the University of the Philippines. He was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 2003.

He received his Master of Laws (2009, De Witt Fellow) from the University of Michigan Law School. He was admitted to the New York Bar in 2012.