John L. Murphy
Partner
John Murphy serves as a trusted advisor to help clients protect and advance their business objectives, especially in transactions involving Latin America and the Caribbean. John has over 25 years of experience helping clients navigate complex cross-border financings, international project development and finance, capital markets transactions, M&A and general corporate matters, with an emphasis on the energy, mining and infrastructure sector, in Latin America and the Caribbean. The foregoing includes extensive work with multilaterals, export credit agencies and development financial institutions in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) matters and projects aimed at advancing the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals across the Western Hemisphere. John is Board Certified as a Specialist in International Law by the Florida Bar.
John has significant transactional experience representing:
- investors, project sponsors, concessionaires, developers, private sector banks and multilateral and bilateral public sector development financial institutions in the evaluation, development and financing of power and infrastructure projects (including Public-Private Partnerships (P3)), in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean;
- arrangers, lenders, agents and borrowers in leveraged acquisition finance, trade finance, structured finance and general corporate lending; and
- issuers and placement agents/underwriters/arrangers in debt capital markets issuances, including 144A, Regulation S and 4(2)(a) private placements.
In addition to his transactional practice, John has advised on cross-border and multijurisdictional workouts and restructurings in over 10 countries, spanning the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean, which has provided him with a keen awareness of critical issues in structuring, negotiating and documenting transactions.
Having studied abroad in Spain and lived, worked and traveled extensively in Latin America and the Caribbean, John has familiarity with local customs and culture, market practices and civil law and common law concepts, all of which guide him in his business-oriented approach to advising clients and helping them solve complex challenges that arise in international engagements.
John also serves as the Co-Chair of the Industry Advisory Board for the Master of Science in Construction Management Program, College of Engineering, University of Miami (2017 – Present).
SELECTED EXPERIENCE
- Advised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. (BBVA) as administrative agent and lender in a COP 1 trillion (USD 238 million) loan to Financiera de Desarrollo Nacional S.A. (FDN), backed by the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a member of the World Bank Group. The proceeds of the loan will be used to finance green infrastructure projects and highways in Colombia, including 4G and 5G toll road projects. It is not common for public entities in Colombia to receive funding for amounts like this in Colombian pesos. The funding in Colombian pesos required us to help BBVA structure the financing to include an embedded derivatives structure (and not with derivatives entered into by the borrower) to hedge the exchange risk.
- Advised the consortium Grupo Vía Central, comprised of Sacyr, NGE, Saceem and Berkes, in the refinancing and additional financing for the construction of the Ferrocarril Central project in Uruguay. The project involves the construction and maintenance of 273 km of railways between the Port of Montevideo and the city of Paso de los Toros. The additional financing consisted of a USD 250 million senior facility provided by the Interamerican Investment Corporation (IDB Invest) with a participation financed through a fixed rate B-Bond private placement, to refinance existing senior debt and provide additional funds for the construction of the project, improving the project’s overall financing terms and conditions. Allianz Global Investors, on behalf of its clients, was the initial purchaser of the notes. The transaction was IDB Invest’s largest-ever B-Bond structured financing. The refinancing required the full amendment and restatement of the main financing documents and the coordination of all senior and subordinated lenders and participants, and the creation of a special purpose trust in the Cayman Islands to issue senior secured notes (the B Bond) and use the proceeds thereof to purchase a participation interest in the Tranche B Loan made by IDB Invest to the borrower.
- Advised Desarrollo Eléctrico Suria, a Colombian energy transmission company, subsidiary of EDEMSA and part of Grupo Ethuss, on the issuance and 4(a)(2) private placement of USD 45 million of senior secured notes to refinance two energy substations and their associated transmission lines designed to support Colombia’s electrical grid buildout, and a credit facility to support the issuance of letters of credit to satisfy the debt service reserve required balance under the notes. AllianzGI and its clients and affiliates acted as the initial purchasers of the notes, JP Morgan acted as Placement Agent and DSCR LC Lender and TMF acted as Intercreditor, Collateral and Paying Agent. The deal required building additional flexibility in the documentation to releverage the equity, if necessary, with a tranche of mezzanine.
- Represented JMMB Bank (Jamaica) Limited, as borrower, and its holding company, JMMB Group Limited, one of the leading financial groups in the Caribbean, as guarantor, on (i) an up to USD 50 Million Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Senior A/B Loan Facility from the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IDB Invest) and (ii) an up to USD 30 Million ESG Senior Loan Facility from Development Finance Institute Canada Inc. (FinDev Canada), in each case to finance the growth of the bank’s Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) and low- and medium-income housing portfolios in Jamaica.
- Represented Gran Americas USME Provision S.A.S., GMasivo 10 S.A.S. and GMasivo 16 S.A.S., the concessionaires in three separate bus lines within the TransMilenio network in the District of Bogota, Colombia, in connection with the US Private Placement of USD 126 million in bonds issued under the Sustainability Bond Framework, which recognizes the favorable environmental and social impact of the buses purchased from Scania with the proceeds of the issuance. The bonds met the criteria for certification by the Climate Bond Standard Board on behalf of the Climate Bonds Initiative and received a positive assessment from ISS-ESG on their alignment to the Green Bond Principles, Social Bond Principles and Sustainability Bond Guidelines. This was an initial issuance in the international capital markets for each of the issuers.
- Represented AENZA S.A.A., a Peruvian-based multinational infrastructure, energy, engineering and construction, and real estate conglomerate (formerly known as Grana y Montero S.A.A.), as borrower, in connection with a $120,000,000 senior secured bridge loan arranged by Banco BTG Pactual S.A. — Cayman Branch, Banco Santander Perú S.A., HSBC Mexico, S.A., Institución de Banca Multiple, Grupo Financiero HSBC and Natixis, New York Branch, to refinance outstanding indebtedness.
- Represented Viettel Perú S.A.C., a Peruvian telecommunications company (d/b/a Bitel) owned by Vietnam’s telecommunications utility, Viettel, as borrower, in connection with a $200,000,000 fixed-rate, dual tranche, senior-secured term loan arranged by Citibank, N.A.
- Represented IBT Health S.A.C., as borrower, and certain of its affiliates as pledgors and guarantors, in connection with a secured bank credit facility for the project financing of two hospitals operated under public-private partnership (P-3) agreements in Peru.
PUBLICATIONS
- “A Case for Comity: The Bankruptcy of Mexico’s Vitro tested US International Insolvency Laws and Serves as a Warning to both Creditors and Debtors.” International Financial Law Review · Sep 1, 2012.
- “Durango’s Impact on Mexico/US Cross-border Insolvency.” LatinLawyer · Apr 1, 2005.
MEMBERSHIPS
- International Bar Association – Member
- Hispanic National Bar Association – Member
- American Bar Association – Member
- Two Hundred Club of Greater Miami – Member
- Commanderie de Bordeaux – Commandeur, Greater Miami Chapter
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
- Board Certified Specialist in International Law, The Florida Bar (2006-Present)
News, Events, & Insights
- Rimon Law Welcomes Corporate, Finance and Business Transactions Attorney Héctor Arangua to the Firm and Officially Establishes Mexico Practice
Diversity January 16, 2024
- Rimon Law Launches LATAM Project Finance Practice with Partner, John Murphy - Latin Lawyer
News September 13, 2023