Martín Soffia
Member of the MA and Venture Capital + Tech team. His practice focuses on general counseling for companies and startups, both domestic and international, from a wide range of industries.
Nicolás Santana
Partner at PPU member of the Corporate / M&A and Venture Capital + Tech team. His practice focuses on counselling clients in matters of corporate M&A, asset purchase, joint ventures, and restructuring. As regards venture capital, he has advised start-ups in capital raising (seed, A and B, series), foreign venture capital funds in their investments in local start-ups, and multinational companies in the development of corporate venture capital projects. He has also advised local and foreign FinTechs focused on digital wealth management, payment means and alternative platforms for transactions.
María Jesús Ibáñez
Member of the Tax and International Trade and Venture Capital + Tech teams. Her area of expertise is international taxation and it is in this context that she has advised clients on structuring investments and financing. She not only has experience in Chile but also in the United States where she worked as an International Tax Consultant at Deloitte LLP after completing her LL.M. at the University of Chicago. María Jesús is a member of the Tax Board of the National Chamber of Commerce, a Woomup mentor and an expert at Hay Mujeres. Among other things, María Jesús is also a former entrepreneur, Instagram content generator and tech investor.
Constanza Rodríguez
Director at PPU member of the Corporate/M&A and Capital Markets teams. Her practice focuses on M&A, capital markets, and corporate law. She has counselled clients on matters of public offers, in IPO processes, in matters of corporate governance, and also on topics dealing with indebtedness. She worked as an international associate at Mattos Filho, Veiga Filho, Marrey Jr e Quiroga Advogados in Brazil, for the area of Capital Markets. She has been recognized by Chambers and Partners as Associate to Watch in the Capital Markets category during 2015, 2016 and 2017 and Associate to Watch in the M&A category for 2022, Rising Star in M&A and Corporate in Legal 500 (2020, 2021 and 2022) and in Capital Markets (2021 and 2022) and as Best Corporate Rising Star in the Americas by Euromoney in the Americas Women in Business Law Awards of 2019.
Sofía Ignacia García
Member of the Venture Capital + Tech Group. His professional practice focuses on general consulting to companies and startups, both national and international, belonging to different industries.
Venture Capital + TECH
Our Venture Capital + Tech specialized area provides comprehensive legal advice to start-ups, venture capital funds, companies, and investors, domestic and foreign, in the territories of Chile, Peru and Colombia, mainly on the following matters
PPU in Guil Mobility’s investment in Human Forest
Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría Chile has advised Guil Mobility Ventures (Venture Capital arm of the Kaufmann Group) on its equity investment in the English startup Human Forest, founded by Chilean entrepreneurs. This transaction was concluded on 2 November for a total amount of up to GPB $5,500,000, and involved the jurisdictions of Chile and England. Thanks to this transaction, Grupo Kaufmann expands its investments, being the first startup in its portfolio to be based in Europe. With this investment Guil Mobility Ventures also expands its international investments in electromobility and sustainable mobility. The advisory focused mainly on the legal due diligence of Human Forest and the negotiation of the investment documents. PPU’s team was led by partner Nicolás Santana together with associate Matías Fernández.
PPU represents Guil Mobility Ventures in Galgo investment
Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría Chile has represented Guil Mobility Ventures, Venture Capital arm of the Kaufmann Group, in its investment via SAFE (simple agreement for future equity) in the fintech startup Galgo (Migrante Holdings Limited), founded by Chilean entrepreneurs. The advice focused mainly on the legal due diligence of Galgo and the negotiation of the investment documents. Thanks to this transaction, closed on 1 September, Kaufmann Group will be able to expand its investments, being one of the first investments that Guil Mobility Ventures makes, on the one hand, in a fintech, and, on the other hand, in a startup that has already completed a Series A financing round. With this investment Guil Mobility Ventures will be able to expand its presence in Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Latin America in general. PPU’s team was composed of partner Nicolás Santana and associate Matías Fernández.
Colombian 4G project closes landmark finance deal
Paul Hastings LLP’s New York office and Posse Herrera Ruiz in Bogotá have helped construction company El Cóndor become the first company to obtain cross-border financing for a privately built project under Colombia’s 4G (fourth generation) infrastructure programme. Clifford Chance LLP in New York and Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría (Colombia) were hired by the lenders Goldman Sachs, Bancolombia, CAF Ashmore and Financiera de Desarrollo Nacional. Sullivan & Cromwell LLP in Washington, DC, New York and London assisted Bancolombia as deal’s trustee. The US$708 million finance will fund the construction of a 300-mile highway connecting the northwestern departments of Antioquia and Bolívar, in a project known as Ruta al Mar. The deal included the issuance of bonds worth 522 billion Colombian pesos (US$188 million) which received two investment-grade ratings. The transaction closed on 21 December. Unlike other toll road projects financed under the 4G programme, Ruta al Mar is not supported by government contributions or traffic top-up payments. The deal is one of the few cross-border infrastructure financings to take place in Colombia in 2017. Cross-border project financing work has dried up in the country since it emerged that Brazilian construction conglomerate Odebrecht had paid bribes to local authorities to win public contracts in several Latin American jurisdictions, including Colombia. By December last year, 12 people in Colombia, including a senator and a former senator, had been arrested due to alleged involvement in the scheme. Counsel to El Condor Paul Hastings LLP Partners Robert Kartheiser and Cathleen McLaughlin, and associates Thomas Sines, Alex Herman, Inho Ko and Nicolas Benvenuto Posse Herrera Ruiz Partner Mariana Posse and associates Jesús Albarrán, Mauricio Nieto, Carlos Guzmán, Camila Arango and Andrés Herrera in Bogotá Counsel to Goldman Sachs, Bancolombia, CAF Ashmore and Financiera de Desarrollo Nacional Clifford Chance LLP Partners Gianluca Bacchiocchi and Jon Zonis, and associatess Guido Liniado, Luis Maria Clouet and Mariana Estévez in New York Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría (Colombia) Partners Juan Fernando Gaviria and Jorge Di Terlizzi, and associates Carlos Padilla, Carolina Duque, Margarita Lorduy, Camila Quintero, María José Ariza, Roberto Camacho, Stefania Olmos, Ana María Ramírez, María Camila Aponte, Daniela Duque in Bogotá Counsel to Bancolombia Sullivan & Cromwell LLP Partners Robert Risoleo in Washington, DC; partner Eric Wang and assciate Joaquin Pérez Alati in New York; and assciate Slki Hong in London
PPU represents Awto in corporate restructuring
Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría has represented Awto in its internal corporate restructuring and the creation of a new holding company in Chile. The restructuring is aimed at facilitating Awto’s expansion into new international markets to complement its current presence in Chile and Brazil, as well as making it easier for the company to attract potential investors in the future. This transaction was completed on 28 July. PPU’s team consisted of senior associate Nicolás Santana, associates Matías Fernández, María Jesús Ibáñez and Tomás Freire.
