About

Number of years practice: 37

Principal practice areas: Capital Markets, Corporate Advisory, Corporate Governance

Bar admissions: New York, Paris

Languages spoken: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French

Nicolas Grabar’s practice focuses on international capital markets and securities regulation and on the representation of large reporting companies. He plays a primary role in the firm’s work for public company clients including leading US and non-US issuers and for global investment banks. Grabar has extensive experience in international financings in public and private markets, including privatization offerings in Europe and Latin America and representation of state-controlled oil and gas producers. He joined the firm in 1984 and became partner in 1991. He received his JD, cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1982 and his BA, magna cum laude, from Harvard College in 1978. He is a member of the ABCNY Financial Reporting, ABA Securities Regulation, and Tribar Opinion Committee.

Cleary’s client base includes leading Mexican companies including Grupo Aeroportuario de la Ciudad de México (GACM), Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte (OMA), Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico and Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste (ASUR), Alfa, Alpek, América Móvil, Banorte, Grupo Bimbo, Grupo Carso, Cemex, Chedraui, Citibanamex, Femsa, Inbursa, Industrias Penoles, Kuo, Grupo Lala, Liverpool, Mexichem, Orbia, Santander Mexico, Vitro, and Vivaaerobus.

The firm’s historical prominence in the market has enabled close ties with the government and key Mexican institutions including the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit, the Ministry of Communications and Transportation, Pemex, CFE, Banxico, and many more, on a wide array of matters, including many largest- or first-of-its-kind transactions. Cleary’s work for government institutions has included ground-breaking privatization transactions, including the privatizations of Telmex (which evolved into América Móvil) and the Mexican airport sector. The firm can point to sustained market dominance over a number of years, with over $50bn in closed M&A involving Mexican companies and over $175bn in capital markets offerings by Mexican issuers since 2006. Work has included advising on a host of landmark deals, including Grupo Bimbo in its strategic outbound acquisitions that transformed it into the world’s largest baking company; and Pemex in several innovative financings, including the largest-ever euro-denominated emerging-market corporate-bond offering.