With the combined bench strength of ten offices in nine countries throughout Latin America, the powerhouse banking and finance group at Aguilar Castillo Love remains a market leader, assisting major regional and global financial institutions, private equity firms and corporates on high-value, cross-border transactions. Representing household names like JP Morgan, HSBC, Bank of America, the Blackstone Group, Credit Suisse and American Express, the team’s comprehensive service covers default swaps, project finance, syndicated loan facilities, credit facility agreements, regulatory matters, due diligence and debt structuring. The team is led by Marco Solano Gómez, a finance expert, who brings over 25 years of advising clients on derivatives and structured products to the team. Its client base spans the pharmaceuticals, automotive, fintech, financial services, medical devices and retail sectors. The practice is supported by associates Karlo Suñol , whose experience includes acting for multinationals in complex proceedings before Costa Rica’s financial regulators, and Stephanie Howard Peña.

The experienced team at regional firm Arias continues to lead in the practice area, advising multinational law firms and local and global banks and financial institutions (including HSBC, JP Morgan, Citibank, and BNP Paribas) on day-to-day matters and cross-border transactions. Headed by Diego Gallegos, a specialist in asset and project finance, and Vicente Lines, who brings decades of experience to adversarial negotiations, acquisitions and financing in regulated industries, the group’s full service extends to regulatory compliance, asset securitisation, debt restructuring, equity investments and bankruptcy law. The team’s clients also span such sectors as energy, education, hospitality and medical devices.

Backed by the combined bench strength of three Costa Rican offices in San José, Puntarenas and Guanacaste, and six other offices across Latin America and Europe, the banking team at BLP assists multinational and national commercial banks, investment banks, private equity sponsors and international funding organisations involved in high-value, multi-jurisdictional financial transactions. Representing such key market players as Citigroup and JP Morgan, the practice is led by capital markets authority Vivian Liberman and Andrés López, a specialist in fintech and blockchain. Julio Castellanos, who recently advised on the refinancing of loan facilities for four 20MW wind farms, brings project finance expertise to the practice, along with Pablo Umaña, who also advises clients on infrastructure transactions across the transportation, manufacturing, agribusiness and hospitality sectors. Since research concluded, the firm further strengthened the team with the hire of Rodrigo Cubero as senior counsel in July 2022; he served as president of Costa Rica’s Central Bank between 2018 and 2022, and his previous experience includes over a decade spent in senior positions at the IMF.

The experienced team at regional firm Consortium Legal remains a force in the practice area, providing support to major international banks, financial institutions and international funding organisations, such as Scotiabank, Citi and the Inter-American Development Bank, on high-value, cross-border transactions and day-to-day matters. The team is led by Mario Quesada Bianchini, an expert in banking M&A, financial regulatory specialist David Arturo Campos, Randall Barquero, who brings expertise in project finance to the team, retail banking head Andrés Chamberlain and Oscar Sandoval , who was promoted to partner in April 2022, who advises clients on complex operations involving credit facilities. With key support provided on multi-jurisdictional deals by senior associate Susana Raventós , the group’s full service extends to assistance with retail, commercial and corporate financing agreements, compliance, capital markets and free trade regimes. The practice’s work spans the energy, insurance and non-profit sectors. Value was added to the team with the April 2022 promotions of Rafaela Solano  and Alexander Coto  to senior associate.

The experienced banking and finance practice at regional firm Latamlex / Gómez y Galindo Abogados, S.A advises national and international financial institutions on day-to-day operations and provides representation before regulatory bodies. The team’s full service covers special bank contracting, derivatives, syndicated loans, the structuring of guarantees, and insolvency and bankruptcy matters. Managing partner Adriana Ramos and the highly regarded Daniel Guillén and José Antonio Hidalgo are the key contacts.

The banking and finance team at EY Law Central America leverages the bench strength of eight offices in seven countries (including the March 2022 opening of a Pacific Coast office in the Guanacaste province) and the experience of its team to advise local and international banks, financial institutions and major multinational corporates such as telecoms company Liberty Latin America, on a diverse spectrum of day-to-day matters and high-value, cross border transactions. The practice is led by department head and associate partner Arturo Apestegui (who has over 25 years of experience in retail banking, credit and security structures and regulatory compliance) and senior manager Carlos Ayon, an expert in multi-jurisdictional litigation and project financing operations. With key support provided by senior manager and credit restructuring specialist Magda Morales, the team’s full service includes assistance with mortgage banking, leverage buyouts, syndicated loans and M&A.

Formed by COLBS Estudio Legal partner Javier Escalante after he and Sebastián Jiménez split their practices in September 2021, Tactic Estudio Legal provides day-to-day support and advice on major transactions to local and international financial institutions and corporates throughout the region. The team is led by Escalante, a seasoned trade negotiator who has served as both consul general of Costa Rica in Singapore and ambassador of Costa Rica in Qatar, bringing expertise in assisting lenders with factoring and collections, condominium developments with credit portfolio management and private companies and family businesses with regulatory compliance. Associates Daniela Alvarado , who manages foreclosure processes, Andrés Herrera, a specialist in regulated industries, and Fabiola Gamboa, who has experience in the management of judicial proceedings, joined the firm with Escalante.

The team at Vector Legal continues to provide bank and non-bank clients with support on capital investments, credit operations, debt restructuring and IPOs. Founding partners Roberto León, Jessica Salas and Roberto Bolaños are the key contacts.

The team at Zürcher, Odio & Raven advises local and multinational financial institutions, multilateral organisations and risk funds on a diverse range of matters, including the regulatory aspects of operations and the design and structuring of commodities and financial derivatives. Experienced lead partner Douglas Soto is a key contact.