Felipe Díaz Toro

Practice Areas

Investment Funds; Capital Markets; Banking & Finance; Corporate; Mergers & Acquisitions.

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Chile; Luxembourg; Spain.

Languages Spoken

Spanish - native; English - fluent; French - fluent.

Work Highlights

Felipe Díaz Toro is the Founding and Managing Partner of EDN Abogados. He has developed an important part of his professional career in the United States of America and in Europe, first as legal counsel at BBVA Bank in New York, later as an associate at Arendt & Medernach (the largest law firm in Luxembourg), and at Loyens & Loeff (one of the most important law firms in Europe) where he became a Senior Associate.

His practice consists mainly in advising international and local clients in various transactions related to investment funds (and in particular alternative investment funds) with a main focus on private equity, real estate, distressed debt and infrastructure. He also advices numerous Latin American asset managers, pension funds, banks and other financial entities in the structuring, distribution, and acquisition of participations in investment funds both in Chile and in foreign jurisdictions such as Luxembourg, Ireland, Cayman Islands, Delaware (among others).

Felipe is the only Chilean lawyer authorized to practice the profession simultaneously in Chile, Spain and Luxembourg.

He is fluent in Spanish, English and French.

Career

Legal Counsel, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A., New York, United States, 2007-2008;

Associate, Arendt & Medernach, Luxembourg, 2010-2011;

Senior Associate, Loyens & Loeff Luxembourg S.à r.l., Luxembourg, 2011-2016;

Founding Partner at EDN Abogados, Chile, 2016 – 2018;

Partner at Palma Edwards Veszpremy, 2018 to July 2020;

Managing Partner at EDN Abogados, Chile, August 2020 to date.

Professional Memberships

Director of the Belgian-Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce of Chile;

Member of the Chilean Bar Association;

Member of the Bar Association of Madrid, Spain;

Member of the Bar Association of Luxembourg, Luxembourg;

Member of the International Bar Association, IBA.

Industry Sector Expertise

Investment Funds;

Capital Markets;

Banking & Finance;

Corporate;

Mergers & Acquisitions

Personal

Bar Association of Santiago, Chile, 2006;

Bar Association of Madrid, Spain, 2015;

Bar Association of Luxembourg (List IV), 2015.

Experience

Regularly advices important Chilean Pension Fund Administrators in their investment processes in alternative assets in various jurisdictions such as Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, Delaware and Ireland. The foregoing by carrying out a detailed review and analysis of the documentation of each fund, negotiating side letters and also preparing due diligence reports and legal opinions. Said advice allowed the clients to comply with the Chilean regulations applicable to these type of investments to achieve their ambitious direct investment plans in foreign alternative assets. He has also advised in the set up and incorporation of a Luxembourg UCITS, as well as in the process of on boarding, due diligence, and KYC of a Chilean asset manager led by the Management Company, the Depositary Bank, and Auditors.

Advised an important Latin American Pension Fund in the liquidation process of its investment in a Luxembourg SICAV-SIF fund for more than USD 100,000,000., where he carried out a detailed review of the fund's documentation in order to clarify the Luxembourg regulatory framework applicable to this class of funds, as well as the rights of its investors.

Participated in advising the Wendel Group, a French private equity fund registered in Euronext Paris, in the acquisition of an Austrian company, which is one of the world leaders in flexible packaging for an amount of EUR 2.3 billion. This was a transaction that involved various jurisdictions such as: Austria, Luxembourg, Germany and the Netherlands.

Participated in advising Alpha Trains, a leading European company in railway leasing, mainly in (i) the acquisition of a portfolio of 202 railway assets in a combined transaction between assets and shares, and in securing subsequent financing; (ii) the refinancing of the existing external debt through the issuance of bonds listed on the Luxembourg stock exchange and obtaining financing for an amount approx. EUR 1.25 billion. He also participated in the debt restructuring in the Alpha Trains group. These transactions involved various jurisdictions such as Luxembourg, UK, Holland, Spain, Belgium, Poland, Austria and France.

He was part of the team that advised the fourth cellular network provider in Poland (WAM in Chile), in the restructuring of its group and in financing through the issuance of notes on the Luxembourg stock exchange for an approximate amount of EUR 415 million.

Clients

Pension Funds; Corporations; Financial Institutions; Asset Managers; Investment companies.

Publications

Legal Industry, Casos Destacados, August 2023 edition (https://thelegalindustry.com/chile/);

Legal Industry, Casos Destacados, Mayo 2023 edition (https://thelegalindustry.com/chile/);

Legal Industry, Casos Destacados, March 2023 edition (https://thelegalindustry.com/chile/);

Diario Financiero, 10 of May 2022, "Desde hace un tiempo, los activos alternativos se han transformado en una opción atractiva para inversionistas locales" (https://www.litoralpress.cl/paginaconsultas/Servicios_NClipSitio/Get_Imagen_Pagina.aspx?LPKey=QL7D3AT4QYXQUZ53PLAVZQQMWG355AU4PGVKTJGMYTMXER7RPB4Q);

Diario Financiero, 13 of July 2021, "La inversión en el extranjero va más de la mano con un proceso natural de sofisticación de los inversionistas locales, que con la situación política" (https://www.df.cl/empresas/entre-codigos/felipe-diaz-la-inversion-en-el-extranjero-va-mas-de-la-mano-con-un).

Education

Awards