Carlos PINTO

Partner | Head of Corporate Law & Finance

Carlos Pinto is a partner at PPO Abogados and leads the firm’s Corporate Law and Finance teams. He is widely recognized for his strategic business insight and deep expertise in complex, high-value transactions. In Chambers & Partners 2024, clients describe him as “one of a kind,” a “brilliant lawyer,” and highlights his “high business acumen” and “very strong commercial vision.”

Carlos has advised multinational clients across a broad range of industries on corporate investments and divestments in Bolivia, cross-border restructurings, M&A transactions, and sophisticated commercial deals. In recent years, he has led transactions valued in the billions of dollars, with a direct impact on Bolivia’s economy.

His finance practice includes advising international and multilateral banks on project and structured finance, syndicated lending, capital markets transactions, and regulatory matters. He also regularly advises investment banks, credit rating agencies, and reinsurers on cross-border financing and compliance with local administrative frameworks.

Practice Areas & Expertise

– Mergers & Acquisitions
– Cross-border Restructuring
– Project Finance & Structured Lending
– Corporate & Commercial Transactions
– Capital Markets
– Financial Regulation

Recognitions & Awards

Carlos’s professional excellence is recognized by leading legal rankings:

IFLR1000

• – Market Leader: M&A, Finance, Project Development (2025)

Latin American Corporate Counsel Association (LACCA)

• – Approved: Corporate and M&A (2025)

Chambers & Partners

• – Corporate & Commercial (2025)
  – Banking & Finance (2025)
  – Energy & Natural Resources (2025)

Legal 500

• – Leading Lawyer: Corporate and M&A (2025)
  – Leader Partner: Banking & Finance (2025)

Representative Transactions

Mergers & Acquisitions

– Advised Asai Capital on the acquisition of Alicorp’s Bolivian subsidiary
– Advised San Cristobal Mining on acquisition of Empresa Minera San Cristobal from Sumitomo
– Advised Inchcape on Bolivian leg of multijurisdictional acquisition of Derco
– Advised Ag-Mining on acquisition of Empresa Minera Manquiri from Coeur Mining
– Advised Shell on the Bolivian leg of its merger with British Gas
– Advised Bayer AG’s Bolivian subsidiary on sale of business unit to Panasonic Healthcare Finance
– Advised Cassa Depositi e Prestiti on a $30M loan to FONPLATA
– Advised JP Morgan, MUFG, and others on a $400M facility to Alicorp
– Advised Credit Suisse and KfW on a $500M sovereign loan for a rail project
– Advised Frigorífico Concepción on a $100M bond issuance under Rule 144A/Reg S
– Advised IFC and Proparco on a $50M secured loan to a Bolivian cooperative
– Advised Santander and others on a $1.5B global capital credit facility

Background & Global Experience

Before co-founding PPO Abogados in 2020, Carlos was a partner at a regional Latin American law firm for 10 years, where he led its growth and headed the Corporate and Finance teams. His international experience includes working with Mayer Brown LLP (Brazil), McLeod Dixon LLP (now Norton Rose Fulbright, Venezuela), and Lockheed Martin Corporation (Washington, D.C.).

Education

– LL.M. in International and Comparative Law, George Washington University Law School
– Postgraduate in Law Firm Management, Fordham University
– Law Degree, Universidad Católica Boliviana

Memberships

– International Bar Association (IBA)
– Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de La Paz (ICALP)
– Ministry of Justice and Institutional Transparency (Bolivia)