IFLR 1000
The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms

Creel García-Cuéllar Aiza y Enríquez is widely recognised for its expertise in banking, capital markets and project finance. The firm has participated in some of Mexico's most innovative transactions over the years. Most recently, it was involved in developing the new certificados de capital de desarrollo, or CKDs, which were introduced to the market in 2009. It was subsequently involved in ten of the 12 CKD-related transactions that came to market by mid-2011. One long-term client refers to Creel's attorneys as "responsive, informed and experienced".

The firm also acted on the country's largest IPO in 16 years: Partner Carlos Aiza advised Casa de Bolsa BBVA Bancomer, Casa de Bolsa Santander, Credit Suisse Securities and UBS Securities on a $881 million global stock offering in November 2010, for the transportation infrastructure company OHL Concesiones Mexico. The company, a subsidiary of the Spanish construction company, Obrascon Huarte Lain, will use the money for expansion and infrastructure projects.

Since 2008, the Mexican government has put a focus on infrastructure through reforms and new legislation. The firm has benefitted from aligning itself with this market. Last year Santiago Sepúlveda advised the borrower Abengoa Cogeneración Tabasco in a complex $460 million project financing for the development and financing of a facility in the Nuevo Pemex gas processing plant in Tabasco. The Nuevo Pemex Cogeneration Project will allow the transformation of natural gas and water into steam and electricity.

Creel García-Cuéllar Aiza y Enríquez reports an impressive volume of complex M&A transactions over the past year. One client refers to the firm's lawyers as "responsive, informed and experienced".

In a competitive unsolicited bid offer made by Interjet, valued at $320 million, a team of lawyers led by partner Jean Michel Enríquez advised a group of airlines on the proposed purchase of 50% of shares in Volaris, Mexico's third largest airline. The shares were previously held by Spanish media giant Televisa and Sinca Inbursa, which is part of Carlos Slim's Grupo Financiero Inbursa.

The deal involved challenges such as creating a structure to accommodate each of the purchasers' investments while complying with Mexican law, which forbids foreign investors from owning more than 25% of voting stock in a passenger airline. The deal closed after just 90 days, in June 2010.

In a deal announced in December 2010, involving a loan portfolio of $2 billion, partners Eduardo Gonzalez and Esteban Valadez advised GE Capital on the acquisition of its Mexican mortgage operations by Santander.