Allende & Brea is sought out for its deep banking regulatory expertise and long track record of working with Central Bank officials. The team is well-versed in all aspects of forex, cryptocurrency, and cross-border payments regulation, and stands out for its ability to build multi-disciplinary teams of corporate, labour and compliance lawyers to guide clients through the fluid, rapidly evolving regulatory and commercial backdrop in areas like fintech and blockchain. Indeed, the practice's fintech capabilities are a standout aspect of the firm's offering, with recent mandates including the successful registration of the country's first cryptocurrency capitalised company, Lawbooks; multiple payments systems-related matters; and a client base that includes Ap Capital Investment, Boku, Crypto.com, Island Pay, NuovoApp and Paysafe. More broadly, in the traditional banking segment, syndicated loans, capital markets transactions, M&A financing, reorganisations and trade finance are also particularly active areas. Banking, payments and fintech expert Carlos Melhem co-leads the team alongside Jorge I Mayora, a banking and financial law specialist who has advised numerous financial institutions on loans, derivative transactions, structured finance and other commercial lending transactions. On the fintech front, IP partner Pablo A Palazzi is also increasingly active as regards payment systems, AI, data privacy and cybersecurity. Associate Esteban Gómez Moretto handles cross-border lending transactions and regulatory work. Payments-focused associate Micaela Boruchowicz is currently on secondment as a foreign associate in the banking law department at Pinheiro Neto Advogados in Brazil.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘A high-impact team that is very committed to the needs of its clients.'

  • ‘They put themselves in the shoes of their clients.'

  • ‘A high level of technical knowledge and collaborative spirit. Partner Carlos Melhem stands out.'

  • ‘The team is excellent. Great knowledge of banking and financing regulation. They provide practical solutions and understand the client's concerns.'

  • ‘Jorge Mayora is masterful. Exceptional technical knowledge.'

Key clients

  • Baillie Gifford
  • Banco Columbia
  • Banco Industrial
  • Banco Itaú Argentina
  • Bank Lombard Odier
  • Bank of America Merrill Lynch
  • Bank of China
  • Banque Internationale Luxembourg
  • Barclays Bank
  • Banco BBVA Argentina
  • Banco Santander Argentina
  • Banco Patagonia
  • Bitso
  • BNP Paribas
  • Blackstone Group
  • Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
  • China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation
  • China Minsheng Banking Corp
  • Clearstream Banking
  • Commerzbank
  • Danske Bank
  • Deutsche Bank Paris
  • Euroclear Bank
  • Export/Import Bank of the United States
  • Galaxy Lithium
  • Grupo Iraola
  • HSBC Bank
  • ING Bank
  • J. Safra Sarasin
  • Julius Bär Group
  • LibertyPay
  • Livent Corp.
  • Quantex LLC
  • Mastercard Worldwide
  • Mastercard Cono Sur
  • Mercedes Benz Compañía Financiera Argentina
  • Moni Préstamos
  • MUFG Bank
  • Openpay Argentina
  • Royal Bank of Canada
  • Standard Chartered Bank
  • Syngenta Argentina
  • Trend Capital
  • Trend Securities
  • UniCredit Bank
  • Wells Fargo Bank

Work highlights

  • Advised Galaxy Lithium and Allkem on the drafting and negotiation of a loan facility agreement with the International Finance Corporation and the Inter-American Development Bank.
  • Advised Banco Santander on the restructuring of a facilities agreement financing for Iberconsa de Argentina, Pesquera Santa Cruz, Atunera Argentina, and Giorno’s activity in Argentina.
  • Structured and constituted a financial private trust for Syngenta Agro.

Lawyers

Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Carlos María Melhem, Jorge Ignacio Mayora