Manuel Quinche > Cuatrecasas > Bogotá, Colombia > Lawyer Profile

Cuatrecasas has a long history in Latin America and is building its presence there with offices in Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Chile. The firm has a varied practice with a strong record in energy and infrastructure M&A, along with project development and project finance. It has impressive connections to energy corporates, lenders, project sponsors and developers and in one recent headline mandate, advised Spanish power company Naturgy on the sale of Chilean power distributor Compañía General de Electricidad (CGE) to China’s State Grid International Development. Bogota partner Manuel Quinche is experienced in project financings in the infrastructure and power sectors, and advised on the financing of Bogata’s first metro line. Lima’s Aldo Reggiardo is noted for project finance in the renewables, infrastructure and mining segments; Mexico City partner León López is another key figure for project matters.

Cuatrecasas has continued to develop its pipeline of banking and finance engagements through its increasingly strong offices in Mexico, Peru, Colombia and Chile. The combined team has solid connections to a range of financial institutions, funds and corporate borrowers. The group has landed a series of impressive refinancings and debt restructurings, along with acquisition, project and real estate finance mandates. It is also making an impression in the non-performing loans (NPLs) transactional space. Lima partner Aldo Reggiardo is co-head of the Latin America finance practice and a notable figure in project financings in the energy, infrastructure and mining sectors. Bogota’s Manuel Quinche is another senior name in structured finance and project finance. Previously based in Santiago, Alfonso Ugarte -who focuses on structured finance, bankruptcy restructuring and reorganisations, and distressed financings- relocated to the New York office in September 2022.

Cuatrecasas‘ stock continues to rise in the Colombian market and its combination of international experience, together with strengthening regional expertise, finds favour with clients. The banking team’s emphasis on infrastructure, particularly transport-related, financings ensures it is a solid choice to advise lenders and borrowers on road, rail, energy and social infrastructure projects. It also has a robust record in fintech matters. The group remains in growth mode following the firm’s Bogotá launch in 2021. Most recently, Ana María Sánchez joined from Peru-based Rebaza, Alcázar & De Las Casas in February 2022 and is noted for her focus on structured and project finance. With the April-2022 promotion of up-and-coming specialist Juan Carlos Puentes to the partnership, the department now fields three partners dedicated to banking and finance work. Practice head Manuel Quinche covers the waterfront on finance matters but is arguably best known for his project finance prowess, such as his recent advice to the lenders (Bancolombia and Fondo de Deuda Senior para Infraestructura en Colombia CAF-AM Ashmore I) on a $120m fourth-generation toll road concession. The group also draws on the experience of impressive senior associate Natalia Arango, who specialises in structured finance and project finance.

New entrant to the table for 2023, Cuatrecasas‘ projects team has hit the ground running following its high-profile hire of new office head and project finance heavyweight Manuel Quinche from Brigard Urrutia in November 2020. He is supported by Juan Carlos Puentes , an April-2022 promotion to the partnership who has a focus on structured finance and project finance work. The group stands out for its enviable balance between lender and borrower-side mandates and its ability to turn its hand to projects in any sphere, including recent deals in the road, rail, healthcare, port and energy segments. However, the group recently endured the departure of infrastructure and renewable energy specialist Alessia Abello (a January 2021 arrival from Financiera de Desarrollo Nacional, where she was Vice President of Legal Affairs), who left to establish her own firm – Abello Galvis Abogados – in August 2022.