With more than 79 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 a 360 comprehensive legal advice.

Our main areas of practice are:

• M&A
• Banking
• Finance
• Tax
• Regulatory
• Project Development
• Labor
• Anti-Trust
• Corporate & Commercial
• Competition
• Compliance
• Dispute Resolution
• Intellectual Property

• Asset finance
• Banking
• Capital markets: Debt
• Capital markets: Derivatives
• Capital markets: Equity
• Competition
• Covered bonds
• Financial restructuring
• Financial services regulatory
• Investment funds
• M&A
• PPP/PFI
• Private equity
• Private equity funds
• Project bonds
• Project development
• Project finance
• Real estate finance
• Real estate funds
• Restructuring and insolvency
• Securitisation
• Structured finance/securitisation
• Trade finance

Mergers & acquisitions
Andrey Dorado
Partner
andrey.dorado@ariaslaw.com

Recent transactional highlights:

• Telefónica: Arias coordinated the entire transaction related to Costa Rica, specifically, the firm provided advice on the applicable legal and regulatory aspects required to make the sale, prepared the vendor’s due diligence, and gave support in the negotiation and drafting of the transaction documentation. The deal initially did not include CR, so Arias had to step up and get up to speed very quickly. The sale stage of the transaction occurred in a very short period of time which was only possible thanks to Arias’ incredible commitment and swift response time, tough afterwards, a very long regulatory process was set in motion, which the firm is leading to obtaining the authorization from the regulatory entities.
• Amvac: Amvac is a public entity based in USA that serves global markets through the development and manufacture of products for agricultural and commercial use. The company sought Arias in 2017 because they were interested in expanding their operations in Central America and the Caribbean by acquiring a regional group called Agricenter, which manufactures and commercializes agrochemicals. It includes more than eight different entities.
• Swissport: This matter involved the purchase and sale of 49% of the shares or minority % of the company called Interairport Services Swissport S.A. a company dedicated to ground handling (which is a service authorized by the state). Arias oversaw all the due diligence of the company and did important tax investigation, that was the sensitive issue of this purchase, the review of the current state of the company, termination of the trust contract to purchase the shares and how it is supervised by the state.
• Delivery Hero: The firm was responsible for the representation in Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala, working together in the transaction with Cuatrecasas in Madrid, leading as international counsel, Ferrere in Ecuador, and Cuatrecasas in Peru. The sale was valued in 230 million euros (US$272 million). Arias advised in the due diligence process and the negotiation and execution of the share purchase agreement.

Banking & finance
Diego Gallegos
diego.gallegos@ariaslaw.com

Vicente Lines
vicente.lines@ariaslaw.com

Recent transactional highlights:

• Arias advised the Foreign Trade Bank for Latin America (Bladex) in the process of providing a loan to Cooperativa de Productores de Leche Dos Pinos R.L. and its subsidiaries in Panama Transnieve Ltd., Corporación Industrial Americana, Ltd. and Productos Nevada S. de R.L. This loan was originally structured in 2017, but Dos Pinos required a refinancing and a loan restructuring due to the impact of the global pandemic on the economic activity. Bladex once again relied on Arias' expertise and trusted our team´s experience and history of good relationship.
• Proparco: Proparco is a subsidiary of Agence Française de Développement (AFD) focused on private sector development, providing funding and support to both businesses and financial institutions across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Proparco provided a loan for US$45 million to Banco Promerica de Costa Rica. Arias advised on the cancellation procedure of a guarantee trust and structuring the loan documentation.
• Arias Costa Rica advised the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO) in structuring the guarantee for the first disbursement of US$30 million, a credit for green loans and financing of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the country, granted to Banco Promerica de Costa Rica. This is a result of the loan signed in 2019 between Banco Promerica and FMO as part of the FI-LAC program (Financial Institutions, Latin America & the Caribbean) where Arias also served as a local advisor.

• Accounting
• Agriculture
• Automotive
• Aviation
• Banking
• Construction and materials
• Consumer goods and services
• Energy
• Financial services
• Fisheries and aquaculture
• Food and beverage
• Forestry
• Gaming
• Government and public policy
• Healthcare
• Industrials
• Insurance
• Investment management
• Media
• Mining
• Natural resources
• Oil and gas
• Pharm and life sciences
• Real estate
• Shipping
• Social infrastructure
• Tech and telecoms
• Tourism
• Transport
• Utilities

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

Centro Comercial El Dorado 6° Piso, Boulevard Morazán, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, C. A.
T +(504) 22214505
E: contact.honduras@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com

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

Pista Jean Paul Genie, Edificio Escala, 3er piso, Managua, C. A.
T+(505) 22981360
E: contact.nicaragua@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com

Calle La Mascota 533, El Salvador
T: (503) 22570900
E: contact.elsalvador@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com

THE TOWERS, Piso 3, Calle 50, San Francisco, Ciudad de Panamá, Panamá
T+(507) 2821400
E: contact.panama@ariaslaw.com
w: www.ariaslaw.com