Manuel Quinche > Cuatrecasas > Bogotá, Colombia > Lawyer Profile

Maintaining its upward trajectory, Cuatrecasas’ Bogotá office continues to make strides following its 2021 launch. The group enjoys a particularly prominent position for lender-side transactions, where it acts for an impressive raft of major domestic and multinational banks. Project finance is another strong suit and the team is routinely involved in many of the most high-profile transactions in the market — for both lenders and borrowers. Go-to finance expert Manuel Quinche spearheads the department and recently advised a group of international lenders (the Bank of Nova Scotia, BNP Paribas, JPMorgan Chase Bank, SMBC, and Bank of New York Mellon) on a $750m loan to Argos North America Corporation. In another headline-grabbing mandate, Quinche acted alongside the Santiago office to advise the lenders (the Bank of Nova Scotia, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank and Goldman Sachs Bank USA) on amending a revolving credit facility of up to $120m granted to Andean Telecom Partners. The group also includes structured finance specialist Ana María Sánchez, who advised the lenders on a $50m loan to several of the Vitalis Group companies, and Juan Carlos Puentes, who was elevated to partner in April 2022. Natalia Arango is a capable senior associate.

Cuatrecasas’ energy team has been on an upward trajectory since the hire of department head and project finance specialist, dual-qualified (Colombia/New York) Ana María Sánchez, who joined in February 2022 from Peruvian firm, Rebaza, Alcázar & De Las Casas. The group was further reinforced in May 2022 with the addition of senior associate Manuel Gómez from Brigard Urrutia, who brings experience in energy, infrastructure, and public law. Project finance is a notable sweet spot for the team and it has also demonstrated strong recent showings in project development, joint ventures, and M&A-related work. Finance specialist Manuel Quinche and energy and infrastructure-focused senior associate Fabio Ardila are also noted.

According to sources, the work product of Cuatrecasas‘ projects team ‘is always characterised by high quality’. With a strong orientation towards finance transactions, it acts for a mix of banks, infrastructure companies, concessionaires, and funds on project finance, infrastructure project structuring and public tenders, among other matters. High-profile finance expert Manuel Quinche steers the practice and is highly regarded for project finance transactions. The department also includes dual-qualified (Colombia/New York) project finance and infrastructure partner Ana María Sánchez, who joined in March 2022 from Peruvian firm Rebaza, Alcázar & De Las Casas; project finance-focused Juan Carlos Puentes, who was promoted to partner in April 2022; and senior associate Natalia Arango.

Cuatrecasas’ projects and energy practice in Latin America is largely driven by its local office in the region, in Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Peru. It has a broad-based practice covering transport infrastructure, social and community infrastructure, and energy (including renewables, oil and gas, and mining). The firm has worked on a series of road and highway projects in Colombia and Mexico, and advises a range of project sponsors and lenders in the wider region. Bogota partner Manuel Quinche is an experienced project finance expert, especially in the transport infrastructure (including roads, railways and metro lines) and renewables segments. Lima’s Aldo Reggiardo is also a recognised project finance specialist in the energy, infrastructure and mining fields. Mexico City partner León López is another key figure.

Cuatrecasas’ multi-office strategy in Latin America continues to pay dividends. The offices in Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Peru advise a range of financial institutions, funds and corporates on acquisition finance, project finance, trade finance, and refinancings and restructurings, among other matters. It is noted for Spanish law-governed financings and has landed a number of major restructuring engagements. Bogota partner Manuel Quinche leads the team and has a fine record in corporate lending, project finance and real estate finance. Santiago’s Roberto Guerrero V has impressed in the restructuring field and Lima partner Aldo Reggiardo is well regarded for project finance. Mexico City partner León López is another important figure in project finance; while Madrid partner Carlos Lasarte regularly advises on Spanish law financings in Latin America, notably advising Bancóldex on its Spanish law bilateral loan agreement with BBVA.