Latin America - Debt Restructuring

Our experience includes tender offers, exchange offers and consent solicitations—as well as negotiated debt restructurings. Past restructuring engagements have included:

• Ajegroup. We represented Bear Stearns as financial advisor and lender to Ajegroup in a corporate restructuring and recapitalization transaction of the second-largest bottling company in Mexico. The transaction was designed to position Ajegroup so that it can raise additional debt and equity finance in the US capital markets.
• Banco Popular de Puerto Rico. We represented Banco Popular de Puerto Rico in the sale of a portfolio of distressed construction and commercial real estate loans to a newly created joint venture that is majority owned by a limited liability company created by an international investment bank and Caribbean Property Group.
• Central Puerto. We represented the Export-Import Bank of the United States in connection with the successful restructuring of the approximately $320 million Senior Secured Debt of Central Puerto, S.A. This was one of the only successful restructurings of electricity generator debt following the Argentine fiscal crisis and subsequent material changes in the regulatory scheme applicable to electrical power generation and distribution in Argentina.
• Cervecería Nacional Dominicana. We represented Standard Bank as dealer manager in a $130 million tender offer by Cervecería Nacional Dominicana, C. por A. to purchase its outstanding Senior Notes due 2013 and we represented Standard Bank in financing part of the tender offer through Standard Bank plc’s credit-linked program. This transaction is notable as it is the first major bond buyback via a tender offer to have taken place in the Dominican Republic. This project was named Corporate Liability Management Deal of the Year 2008 by Latin Finance.
• Controladora Comercial Mexicana. We represented Barclays Capital in connection with the recent bankruptcy filing in Mexico of Controladora Comercial Mexicana (CCM), arising from CCM's liability under currency exchange derivatives contracts. This transaction was named IFLR Restructuring Deal of the Year 2011 and Latin Finance Restructuring Deal of the Year 2011.
• Corporación Durango, S.A. de C.V. We represented the unsecured bank creditors of Corporación Durango, S.A. de C.V., Mexico’s largest pulp/paper company, in its debt restructuring, which was the first "prepack" restructuring under Mexico’s concurso mercantil law.
• Independencia. We represented the sole arranger in connection with Independencia’s private placement of $165 million of 15 percent senior secured notes due 2015. The issuance of the 15 percent senior secured notes was the company’s exit financing in connection with its judicial reorganization under Brazilian bankruptcy laws which was named Restructuring Deal of the Year 2010 by Latin Lawyer.
• Lamosa. We represented a committee of creditors in the restructuring of $675 million of senior secured peso and dollar loans outstanding to Lamosa, SAB de CV, a Mexican corporation.
• Trinidad Cement Limited. We are Counsel to the Steering Committee of Creditors for the restructuring of $263 million of debt of Trinidad Cement Limited and its subsidiaries in Trinidad, Jamaica, Barbados, Guyana, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Anguilla. The Steering Committee includes International Finance Corporation, which extended a secured loan to TCL's Jamaican subsidiary in part to finance construction of a new cement kiln.
• Unigel S.A. We represented the creditor group, in the restructuring of several bilateral pre-export loans into a $238 million pre-export facility for Unigel S.A., a Brazilian conglomerate in the chemical, fertilizer, plastics and packaging sectors.
• Usina Santa Isabel S.A. We represented the creditor group in the restructuring of Brazilian real and US dollar-denominated debt of Usina Santa Isabel S.A.