Emilio Saiz

Emilio Saiz is Chair of Hughes Hubbard & Reed’s Latin America practice group and Managing Partner of the Miami Office. He is also a member of the firm’s Finance, Aviation and Corporate practices. He regularly advises corporations and financial institutions in corporate and structured finance transactions, including syndicated and credit enhanced loan facilities, sustainability-linked and green loan facilities, domestic and cross-border aircraft lending/leasing, acquisition financings, project financings, trade financings, convertible loans, restructurings and derivative products. Emilio also advises corporations and financial institutions in mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, product distribution and other general corporate and commercial matters. Emilio has particular experience in matters that are international in nature, most notably in Latin America. 

• Represented a club of banks led by Bank of America on a $400M term loan facility to Chedraui.
• Represented a bank club in connection with a $300 million sustainability-linked revolving credit facility for Brazilian energy company Raízen.
  
• Represented a syndicate of banks led by Citibank and Credit Agricole in a $3 billion syndicated revolving loan facility for Brazilian mining giant Vale S.A.
• Represented a bank syndicate in a $750 million sustainability-linked credit facility for Suzano.
• Represented Mexican clinical laboratory group Grupo de Diagnóstico Aries in its syndicated term loan facility for the acquisition of a majority stake in Access Medical Laboratories in the United States. 
• Represented a club of three banks that provided a $1.25 billion sustainability linked term loan credit facility for Petrobras, its first sustainability-linked loan facility.
• Represented United Airlines, Inc. in a $10.75 billion debt financing secured by liens on the company’s international route authorities, take-off and landing slots and airport gate leaseholds - the largest debt financing by an airline in history.
• Represented Rheinmetall AG (RHM) in its pending $950 million acquisition of Loc Performance Products.
• Represented JOST Werke SE in the acquisition of Crenlo do Brasil from Angeles Equity Partners.
• Represented Citibank N.A. and Goldman Sachs USA as joint mandated lead arrangers for a $2 billion senior secured credit facility to Setanta Aircraft Leasing DAC, a special purpose borrower of AerCap Holdings Group.
• Represented United Airlines, Inc. in connection with a $1.32 billion public offering of enhanced equipment trust certificates (EETCs) secured by 39 Boeing aircraft.
• Represented an international accounting firm on the restructuring of all of its debt facilities and derivative products, including a syndicated MXN revolver to its Mexican subsidiary. 
• Represented a syndicate of banks led by Mizuho in a $450 million syndicated revolving loan facility to Brazilian multinational food company JBS S.A. and certain of its subsidiaries.
• Represented a syndicate of banks in an $875 million revolving credit facility for Brazilian steel producer Gerdau S.A. and various subsidiaries throughout the world.
• Represented Republic Airways on a loan agreement with Agência Especial de Financiamento Industrial S.A. – FINAME, a wholly owned subsidiary of Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (BNDES), for up to 14 new Embraer 175LR aircraft, with a total lending commitment of up to $293,250,000.
• Represented MUFG Bank, Ltd. as administrative agent, joint lead arranger and bookrunner in a $2 billion revolving credit facility for Brazilian mining giant Vale S.A.
• Represented a syndicate of 7 banks in connection with a $600 million term loan pre-export finance facility for a Brazilian joint venture that produces sugar, ethanol and bioenergy.
• Represented a syndicate of 17 banks that provided a $5 billion revolving credit facility for Petrobras.
• Represented Coöperatieve Rabobank U.A., Natixis’ New York branch and a syndicate of other banks in their $143 million sustainability-linked export prepayment facility for agricultural company Tereos Açúcar e Energia Brasil S.A, the Brazilian subsidiary of Tereos SCA. 
• Represented Brambles Ltd. in the financing of its joint venture with First Reserve relating to their oil and gas containers solutions businesses.
• Represented a syndicate of 11 banks in a $1.175 billion credit facility for a Brazilian paper company.
• Represented United Airlines in a $7.491 billion secured loan under the U.S. Department of Treasury’s CARES Act airline loan program.
• Represented United Airlines in a $325 million convertible loan to Avianca Holdings S.A. The deal was named the “Latin America Deal of the Year” by Airfinance Journal and was shortlisted for the “Deal of the Year” award by Latin Lawyer magazine.
• Represented the Republic of Paraguay in connection with a $657.6 million financing to improve two of the country’s federal highways, the first public-private partnership in Paraguay. The deal was named the “Infrastructure Financing of the Year: Southern Cone” by LatinFinance magazine.
• Represented United Airlines in a $3 billion public offering of enhanced equipment trust certificates (EETC) secured by aircraft, spare engines and aircraft spare parts. This transaction was named the 2020 “EETC Deal of the Year” by Airfinance Journal.
• Represented a leading Central American company in the acquisition of a group of companies that produces, exports, ships and distributes frozen orange juice concentrate from Costa Rica.
• Represented MediaNews Group (d/b/a Digital First Media) in the acquisition of full ownership of its California operations, and the sale to Gannett Co. of 11 media organizations. 
• Represented the Republic of Paraguay in connection with the issuance of $732 million in bonds by a special purpose vehicle to finance the construction of the Bioceánico highway. 
• Represented the Central Bank of Paraguay (“BCP”) in a landmark currency swap agreement with the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”). 
• Represented a private equity fund in an auction sale of its controlling equity stake in a large media company.  
• Represented a Latin American plastics manufacturer and distributor in the acquisition of plastics manufacturing and distribution companies in Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay from a distressed European company. 
• Represented BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit Agricole CIB and Mizuho Bank Ltd. as joint lead arrangers and a syndicate of 17 banks in connection with a $4.35 billion revolving credit facility for Brazilian oil giant Petrobras. The deal was named a “Deal of Year 2018” by LatinFinance magazine. 
• Represented BAC Credomatic Holding in the sale to GE Capital Global Banking of 25.1% of its ownership stake in BAC Credomatic, which has retail banking operations in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Mexico, the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas. 
• Represented a major Brazilian steel conglomerate as borrower in connection with a $3 billion revolving credit facility transaction, named "Loan of the Year 2011" by IFR magazine. 
• Represented HSBC Securities Inc. and Société Générale as joint lead arrangers in two loan facility transactions for a Brazilian pulp and paper group aggregating $2.65 billion, named "Deal of the Year 2011" by Trade Finance magazine. 
• Represented an investment group led by Smithfield Group and Kensington Capital Partners in connection with secured debt financing relating to the acquisition of Pure Power Technologies from Navistar International Corp. 
• Represented Credit Agricole as arranger and agent in a $600 million term loan facility for a Brazilian energy company. 
• Represented the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. as joint lead arrangers in a $100 million loan to Peruvian electricity generator EnerSur. 
• Represented a Colombian bank in a bid to acquire the Latin American banking subsidiary of a major European bank. 
• Represented a syndicate of 25 banks in a $1 billion loan to a major aircraft manufacturer in Brazil, Cayman Islands and Spain. 
• Represented the central bank of a Latin American country in connection with a currency swap agreement with International Finance Corp. (IFC) 
• Represented a major Uruguayan bread manufacturer in establishing operations in the United States, including with respect to real estate acquisition, construction and general corporate advice. 
• Represented Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior (Bladex) in connection with a risk-sharing facility of up to $350 million with IFC to expand access to trade finance for agribusinesses in Latin America and contribute to regional food security. 
• Represented The Bank of Nova Scotia, BNP Paribas, Natixis and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. as joint lead arrangers in two loan facility transactions for a Brazilian conglomerate aggregating $1.2 billion. 
• Represented a group of 18 banks in a $500 million senior secured trade-related facility for a major Brazilian pulp and paper group. 
• Represented Bladex as arranger in connection with a $100 million pre-export loan to a Guatemalan agro-industrial company that produces sugar. 
• Represented Wells Fargo as administrative agent in connection with a $100 million syndicated senior unsecured term loan facility to a financial services institution. 
• Represented a group of 10 banks in a $1.04 billion export prepayment facility for a major Brazilian steel conglomerate. 
• Represented ABN Amro, Calyon, Citi, the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi and WestLB as administrative agents in six separate syndicated facilities aggregating over $3.3 billion in connection with a corporate restructuring by a Brazilian industrial group. 
• Represented Citibank NA and HSBC Bank USA NA as arrangers in a $450 million syndicated term loan to a Brazilian energy company. 
• Represented Bank of America NA in several cross-border aircraft lending/leasing transactions in Latin American countries. 
• Represented a subsidiary of General Electric Capital Corp. in several cross-border aircraft lending/leasing transactions in Latin American countries. 
• Represented Citibank NA as issuing bank, lender, and administrative and collateral agent in connection with several secured transactions aggregating over $150 million with the owner of several oil drill ships in Brazil, including a term loan and the issuance of several letters of credit. 
• Represented broker-dealers in connection with the unwind of failed derivatives, and repurchase and securities lending transactions.