José Santos
Partner, Head of Corporate
Location
British Virgin Islands
Other information
José, managing partner (BVI) and Head of Corporate advises corporate and private clients in relation to wealth-holding structures, corporate, corporate finance and investment fund services. He joined Forbes Hare from Maples and Calder as a corporate partner in 2010. He trained and qualified with Baker McKenzie in London, and has over 20 years’ experience working for leading firms in London, the Cayman Islands and the BVI. He is bilingual in English and Spanish and also has a good working knowledge of Brazilian Portuguese. José heads the firm’s Latin American practice.
On the corporate side, José specialises in all aspects of corporate and commercial transactions including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, debt and equity financings, public financing (including listings on all the major markets), structured finance and offshore investment funds. He has particular niche expertise in Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) transactions, having advised on the majority of the leading BVI and Cayman SPAC offerings and subsequent business combinations.
In the private client sphere, José advises families, individuals and their professional service providers in relation to the establishment and management of compliant wealth-holding structures. A significant proportion of this work originates in Latin America.
Education
London School of Economics (LLM)
Kent University (BA Hons)
Bar Admissions
Admitted as a solicitor of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (British Virgin Islands)
Admitted as a solicitor in England & Wales (now non-practising)
Practice Areas
Corporate Finance
Mergers and Acquisitions
Project Finance
Investment Funds
Banking & Finance
Languages
Spanish
Portuguese (working knowledge)