Address:
Calle La Mascota 533
Colonia San Benito
San Salvador
El Salvador
Regional Managing Partner: Armando Arias
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Co-Managing Partner: Lilian Arias
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Partner: Ana Mercedes López
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Partner: Luisa Rivas
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Partner: Carolina Lazo
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Partner: Mario Lozano
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Number of lawyers: 34
Partners: 12
Staff: 50
Network memberships: ASIPI, INTA, IBA, PRAC, NYSBA, AIPPI, WLG, AZFA, FBA, ALAF
Languages: English, Spanish, French
Firm overview We recommend that you provide a concise firm description that clearly positions your firm and the specialised services it provides.
With 80 years of experience, we have lawyers with long experience in several practice areas and young lawyers, thus becoming a firm that is constantly renewed and adapts to the today's world needs, ensuring to offer you the best legal talent and service. The firm’s heritage, passion for law and commitment to quality, allows Arias to grow along with the region and overcome new challenges in each country in which Arias operates: Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama
Our elite team of practitioners advice global corporations in a variety of industries such as: aviation, hospitality, energy, banking, pharmaceutical, technology, food and beverages, services, TMT, retail, NGO, Investment Funds, consumer goods, health care, among others. The finance and corporate department are the largest in our firm and this responds to our experience and reputation in the market and the demands of our clients, multinational and national companies. Also, the department is integrated by a team of lawyers with different areas of expertise giving comprehensive legal advice.
Some of our areas of practice are:
Banking and Finance
Armando Arias: armando.arias@ariaslaw.com
Lilian Arias: lilian.arias@ariaslaw.com
Roberta Gallardo: roberta.gallardo@ariaslaw.com
Ana Mercedes Lopez: anamercedes.lopez@ariaslaw.com
Mario Lozano: mario.Lozano@ariaslaw.com
Luisa Rivas: luisa.rivas@ariaslaw.com
Carolina Lazo: carolina.lazo@ariaslaw.com
BANKING AND FINANCE
Private placement of senior notes by Procaps Group for US$115MM for a term of 10 years, for the repayment of existing debt of the group, as well as for general corporate purposes. Arias advised Procaps Group in the review of the Notes Purchase and Guarantee Agreement, the compliance of contractual conditions in El Salvador, including the preparation of the respective corporate resolutions, issuance of Director´s Certificates, and issuance of its legal opinion, as well as the preparation and review of all related legal documentation. Procaps Group, through its subsidiary Procaps, S.A., launched a private offering of an aggregate principal amount of US$ 115MM of senior notes, secured by different subsidiaries of the group in different countries, such as Colombia, Brazil, and El Salvador, in a private placement transaction led by Prudential Private Capital, to entities including one or more investment funds or managed accounts, with a final maturity of 10 years and amortization payments starting on the sixth anniversary of the closing of the transaction. Net proceeds from the issuance of the senior notes will be used primarily to repay existing debt, as well as for general corporate purposes. This deal is the first private placement of senior notes of Procaps Group and is expected to give the group additional financial flexibility to execute its growth strategy by refinancing current obligations at a lower interest and with an increased repayment duration.
Syndicated loan to CrediQ, to be used for CrediQ working capital en El Salvador and Costa Rica. The syndicated loan was structured in two senior tranches: (i) an unsecured tranche for $35,800,000 and (ii) a secured tranche for $65,700,000 Arias acted as local counsel for the lenders and the agent (Bladex) in El Salvador and Costa Rica. The collateral of the secured tranche is a movable guarantee granted by the debtor in El Salvador and Costa Rica according to the applicable law of those jurisdictions. It was complex because of the timing. It was very challenging assist in the negotiations of the loan documents and prepared the collateral in a short period because the requirement of the debtor to close the financing before the end of the year 2021.
M&A
Sale of the operations of Telefonica in El Salvador, seller entity of the Telefonica business in El Salvador.
Arias advised Telefónica, S.A., TLK Investments, C.V. and Telefónica Centroamérica Inversiones, S.L., as selling companies, in the execution of the share purchase agreement regarding the sale of 100% of its interest in the operations in El Salvador in favour of General International Telcom Limited, a sale valued at 144 million dollars. The closing of the sale took place in January and was subject to the authorizations of the corresponding regulatory (antitrust) authority. The regulatory process and closing were also advised by the firm.
Arias' provided advice regarding the applicable legal and regulatory aspects required to carry out the sale, also performed the due diligence, supported in the drafting and review of the transaction documentation which was governed by New York law, among others. The teams were made up of professionals from various practice areas (corporate, Mergers and Acquisitions, regulatory, intellectual property, competition and taxes) to efficiently meet the needs of this transaction. Arias also advised Telefónica in the authorization process before the Competition regulator, and in the closing of the transaction which involved the analysis of different potential scenarios. Telefónica's subsidiary, Telefónica Centroamérica Inversiones, S.L. A company owned, directly and indirectly, 60% by Telefónica and 40% by Corporación Multi Inversiones (through its vehicle TLK Investments, C.V.), reached an agreement with General International Telecom Limited, for the sale of its interest in the company of Telefónica Móviles el Salvador, S.A. de C.V. (hereinafter, "Telefónica El Salvador"), after having passed through another process with América Movil in 2019 which resulted in a failed transaction terminated by the parties in 2020, after recieving a non-favorable resolution from the competition authority.
The purchaser, represented initially by Honduran Grupo Atlantida, comes as a new player in the Salvadorian telecommunications market
ARIAS GUATEMALA:
Diagonal 6, 10-01 zona 10 Centro Gerencial Las Margaritas, Torre II, oficina 402-B.
Ciudad de Guatemala, Guatemala, C. A.
T: +(502) 23827700
E: contact.guatemala@ariaslaw.com
ARIAS HONDURAS:
Centro Comercial El Dorado 6° Piso, Boulevard Morazán.
Tegucigalpa, Honduras, C. A.
T +(504) 22214505
Edificio Park Plaza, Local 19 Barrio Guamilito, 5° y 6° Calle, 11 Avenida N.O.
San Pedro Sula, Cortes, Honduras, C. A.
T +(504) 25502202
E: contact.honduras@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com
ARIAS NICARAGUA:
Pista Jean Paul Genie, Edificio Escala, 3er piso, Managua, C. A.
T+(505) 22981360
E: contact.nicaragua@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com
ARIAS COSTA RICA:
Leumi Business Center, 9no piso / 9th floor. Sabana, San José, Costa Rica
T: +(506) 40362800
E: contact.costarica@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com
ARIAS PANAMÁ:
The Towers Business Plaza, 3rd Floor, Calle 50 & 66, San Francisco, Panama City, Panama
T+(507) 2821400
E: contact.panama@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com