Dentons Jiménez de Aréchaga‘s banking and finance department has a strong track record in the Uruguayan market, having been the adviser of choice for Banco Santander for over thirty years. Although the firm advises clients from a wide range of sectors, including retail and fintech, it has notably consolidated its experience in project financing transactions in recent years: it advised Grupo Vía Central on the Ferrocarril Central project, a public-private partnership railway project for which $1.1b has been raised. The practice is co-led by Nicolás Herrera Alonso, who assists local and international financial entities with structured and project financing and provides consultancy services to local and multinational companies; Mariela Ruanova, specialist in banking law with a focus on innovation and technology; and Fernando Jiménez de Aréchaga Jr, a project financings expert who has worked on some of Uruguay’s most notable PPP projects in recent years. Senior associates Mariana Lartigau, Alfredo Arocena, Carolina Bianchi and Maite Gaynicotche provide valued support to the practice group.
Key clients
- Grupo Santander
- Copetrol
- Grupo Vía Central
- Potren
- Credit Agricole
- Allianz
- FirstCaribbean International Bank (Jamaica)
- Banco de Sabadell, Miami Branch
- Caixabank
- Republic Bank
Work highlights
- Advised Conafin Afisa as trustee and CVU as trustor in the structuring of a collateral trust composed of future receivables against the Uruguayan Ministry of Transport and Public Works for up to $645m.
- Assisted FirstCaribbean International Bank, CaixaBank and Banco de Sabadell as lenders with a secured term loan facility to Seawind Key Investments.
- Advised Mercado Libre on obtaining authorisation from the Central Bank of Uruguay to be an electronic money issuer.
Lawyers
Practice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Nicolás Herrera Alonso, Mariela Ruanova, Fernando Jiménez de Aréchaga Jr