Eduardo Cárdenas

Practice Areas

Corporate; Mergers and Acquisitions; Trusts and Estates; Banking and Finance.

Career

For over 40 years Eduardo has practiced corporate law, focusing on mergers and acquisitions of the most complex, high-value transactions in Colombia’s history. His practice benefits from a period as Microsoft Corporation’s senior regional counsel for Latin America. His client list features active, leading local and foreign entities in all major sectors of the Colombian economy and leading corporate clients based across Latin America, USA, Europe and Asia Pacific, including financial services, consumer goods, energy and natural resources, telecommunications, manufacturing and transportation.

Professional Memberships

IBA, Colegio de Abogados Comerciales, Colegio de Abogados Rosaristas, Colegio de Abogados de Minas y Petróleos

Work Highlights

Real Estate experience

• Black Orchid Real Estate S.A.S.: Advising on the acquisition of a plot of land located in the city of Cienaga Magdalena, with an area of 24 hectares and its subsequent negotiation and execution of a lease agreement with a company that will incorporate a solar energy project in the plot owned by our client.

• Cárdenas Villa & Cia S. en C. – Gran América Project: Advising the company Cárdenas Villa & Cia on the acquisition of a plot of land located in the city of Bogotá and its subsequent contribution to a trust that will carry out a significant real estate development consisting of 16 properties, with a surface area of approximately 3,000 square meters. The project will be used for housing and will have a commercial space.

• Private Capital Fund Azur – Compartimento Dorado Plaza: Advising on the sale of 159 properties located in the Dorado Plaza Shopping Center in favor of an investment vehicle of the Real Estate Collective Investment Fund Sura AM Rentas Inmobiliarias. Eduardo acted as legal advisor to the Fund in the structuring, drafting and negotiation of all relevant documents, including, but not limited to, the promise of sale, the public deed of sale, the assignment of lease agreements and the correction of certain contingencies identified in the due diligence.

Corporate experience

• Ford: Advising on the incorporation of a subsidiary and a particular kind of company (sociedad anónima simplificada S.A.S.) to perform their imports, sale and marketing of their products. Advising on corporate, labor, tax, habeas data, intellectual property, and consumer protection claims.

• Alpina S.A.S.: Advising on the creation of the company Grupo Alpina S.A.S., the group's holding company and on the roll-up of the companies that would make up the group.

Microsoft: Advising permanently on contractual, corporate, intellectual property and labor matters.

• WPP: Advising on corporate law to companies of the group.

Mergers and Acquisitions experience

• Incofin, BIO, FMO and Triple Jump: Advising Incofin, BIO, FMO and Triple Jump on the acquisition of Banco Popular in Honduras. Banco Popular is the most import microfinance institution in the country. Amount of the transaction: US$ 13 million.

• Azur Private Capital Fund: Advising on the sale of 159 mixed-use properties, including offices and commercial premises, which are part of the Dorado Plaza Business Center, in the city of Bogotá DC, in favor of a real estate vehicle constituted by Sura Asset Management for these purposes.

• Moloko S. de R.L. / Tubarao S de R.L.: Counseling during the indirect sale of 48% of the outstanding shares of an important dairy company. Our work included a drafting and negotiating of the acquisition agreements. This included the structuring of a series of complex set guaranties, which included the spin-off of a local company and of certain real estate assets, and the pledge of the shares of the resulting company.

Banking and Finance experience

• Raiffeisen Bank: Advising Raiffeisen Bank on the financing granted to Ultracem S.A.S. Amount of the transaction: US$ 10 million.

• ExcelCredit: Advising ExcelCredit on the financing granted by Bancolombia S.A. to fund its promissory notes operation in Colombia. Amount of the transaction: US$ 35 million.

• Kawa Capital Partners: Advising Kawa Capital Partners, as lender, in the financing of ExcelCredit S.A.S. to originate payroll loans for an amount of US$12,5 million and subsequent extensions and increases of the credit line.

Languages Spoken

English; French; Spanish

Education

Awards