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Mr. Aarún practices banking and financial law, with an emphasis on structured finance, real estate finance, project finance, asset -based finance , mezzanine finance , as well as complex restructuring processes (non-contentious) in Mexico. Mr. Aarún represents a variety of clients in all types of banking and financial transactions. Among others, Mr. Aarún regularly advises national and international banks, finance companies, debt funds, investment banks and other financial institutions and institutional investors, as well as corporate debtors, on a wide variety of financial transactions, including bilateral and syndicated, domestic and cross-border, secured and unsecured, preferred and subordinated ( mezzanine) loans , structured finance, real estate finance, project finance, acquisition finance, corporate finance, asset -based finance , loan portfolio financing (e.g., payroll loans), agricultural finance and restructurings, as well as creditors and debtors in complex (non-contentious) restructuring processes. Recently, he participated, representing the creditor group, in the negotiation and implementation of a cross-border multilateral financial restructuring (successfully implemented during the global COVID-19 pandemic) of one of the most important players in the film exhibition market in Mexico. He also represented one of the largest financial companies in Mexico and Latin America (primarily providing consumer loans to individuals and financing solutions to SMEs) in the formalization of the Mexican component of its Chapter 22 restructuring, including the structuring, negotiation, and implementation of a DIP financing, the bankruptcy proceedings for several subsidiaries in Mexico, the cross-border debt restructuring, the negotiation with secured and unsecured creditors, and the implementation in Mexico of intercompany financing/debt transfers pursuant to the Chapter 11 plan. He participated in what is considered the largest bankruptcy reorganization plan ever seen in Mexico, in the offshore drilling sector. He has also advised private equity and venture capital funds on mezzanine financing structures for various sectors, including energy (wind industry), telecommunications (advanced fiber optic broadband, wireless and Wi-Fi networks), data centers ( data center infrastructure development), and the hospitality industry, among others. In the financing practice, Mr. Aarún recently participated in the negotiation and implementation of a financing (“green loan”) for the renovation and development, in Mexico City, of the largest public bicycle-sharing system in Latin America, as well as in the negotiation of various financings for the acquisition and development of hotels located in Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and Cancun (including the negotiation of conditions with the hotel operators), through the implementation of innovative structures that successfully facilitated the viability of the projects. He has participated in the negotiation and implementation of structured financing, both domestic and cross-border, including, among others, his participation in a multilateral structured refinancing for one of the largest real estate development companies in Mexico, a leader in the sale of homes financed through INFONAVIT, with a complex collateral structure consisting of, among others, more than 50,000 real estate properties located in different jurisdictions in Mexico, as well as in various structured financing in the hospitality industry for the acquisition, development, and operation of, among others, various shopping centers, industrial parks, restaurants, and hotels located in different jurisdictions of the Mexican Republic. Likewise, Mr. Aarún has represented both innovative companies (startups) and their funders, dedicated to the acquisition, rehabilitation, and sale of real estate properties, in the implementation, negotiation, and formalization of innovative financing structures. Mr. Aarún has been recognized as a Leading Lawyer and recognized in the field of banking and financial law by various international publications, including Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, and Best Lawyers. He is co-author of the following publications: (i) the International Financial Law Review (IFLR) publication entitled Americas Regional Report 2016, “Smoothing the Process” Insolvency and Corporate Reorganization 2016; and (ii) the Mexico chapter in the 2021 American Bar Association (ABA) publication entitled “Global Financial Collateral: A Guide to Security Interest in Securities, Securities Accounts, and Deposit Accounts.” Mr. Aarún earned his Law Degree from Anáhuac University in Mexico City in 2003, a Postgraduate Degree in Corporate Law from Anáhuac University in Mexico City in 2005, and his Master of Laws and Business Administration Program from Instituto de Empresa in Madrid, Spain in 2006. Mr. Aarún worked as a Foreign Associate in Cleary Gottlieb's New York office in 2011. Mr. Aarún is a member of the Mexican Bar Association, the American Bar Association (ABA), the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA), and the Mexican-Lebanese Bar Association (“Al-Muhami”).
