Mr Mario Quesada Bianchini > Consortium Legal > San Jose, Costa Rica > Lawyer Profile

The banking, finance and fintech team at Consortium Legal remains a leader in the marketplace, harnessing the deep bench strength of offices in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua to advise a client roster of major international banks, financial institutions and funding organisations (which includes Scotiabank, Citibank and the Inter-American Development Bank) on day-to-day matters and high-value, multi-jurisdictional matters. The practice’s full range of services extends to assistance with financial industry M&A, regulatory compliance, retail, commercial and corporate lending, fintech and estate planning through diverse trust operations. The team is headed by banking M&A expert Mario Quesada Bianchini; Alejandro Vásquez Rodríguez; David Arturo Campos, a specialist in financial regulatory matters; Randall Barquero, who brings expertise to advising local and international banks on contracts, credit structuring and project finance; Oscar Sandoval, who advises clients on complex operations involving credit facilities; Andrés Chamberlain, who heads the retail banking divisions; and senior associate ​​Rosa Jiménez Morua​, who joined from private practice in May 2023. Key support is provided by senior associate Susana Raventós, who assists with complex, cross-border transactions.

One of the largest firms in Central America, with a deep bench of more than 200 lawyers based across its nine offices in the region, Consortium Legal remains first port of call for advice on cross-border matters, syndicated loans, project finance, bond issuances, M&A and fintech. The firm has a particularly strong platform in Costa Rica, with offices in San José and Escazu, as well as the hospitality and tourism hubs of Guanacaste and Tamarindo; Randall Barquero and Mario Quesada Bianchini are key figures in the sizeable banking team, while Juan Manuel Godoy (an expert in the energy sector and green projects), and Rolando Laclé Zúñiga (a specialist in foreign investment), are prominent names for banking matters. In Guatemala, firm president Alvaro Castellanos heads the banking practice and oversees the corporate team with tax specialist Alfredo Rodríguez. José Ramón Paz Padilla, José Ramón Paz Morales, José Rafael Rivera and Gustavo León-Gómez take the lead on corporate and finance transactions in Honduras (where the firm has two offices). Oscar Samour, who is well versed in multi-jurisdictional transactions, heads the finance team in El Salvador and is also a notable member of the corporate practice, alongside Diego Martín and Maria Alejandra Tulipano; while Olga Barreto and Rodrigo Taboada are the go-to advisers in Nicaragua.