Joaquín Sales is partner and head of the Banking & Finance team of King & Wood Mallesons in Spain. A lawyer with over 20 years of experience, Joaquín advises banks, financial institutions, investment funds, and corporations on all kinds of financing transactions: project finance, acquisition finance, corporate, and asset finance. He also has in-depth experience in structured finance transactions and securitisation deals, both domestic and international.
Joaquín also provides guidance to commercial banks, multilateral banks, funds, and corporations in the energy, infrastructure, TMT, and capital market sectors.
Some of the companies he has advised include, among others, Abac Capital, Abanca, Arcano, Asterion Industrial Partners, Australia National Bank, AustralianSuper, Bank of Shanghai, BBVA, CAPZA, CMA CGM, EDP Energias de Portugal, EDP Renováveis, European Investment Bank, Export Import Bank of China, Finerge, Galp, GED Capital, Hispasat, ICO, CaixaBank, Magnum Industrial Partners, MCH Private Equity, Portobello Capital, Qualitas Equity Funds, Santander, Valencia Club de Fútbol and VM Energía.
Joaquín is recognised as one of the best specialists in Banking & Finance Law in Spain by the main legal directories including Chambers & Partners, Legal 500, and Leaders League.
According to Chambers Europe, “Joaquín Sales is recognised by clients as a practical, creative lawyer who displays superior project management skills”, and “is extraordinary from a technical point of view, very senior but always directly involved and extremely pleasant to work with.”
Highlighted deals
- Advising the European Investment Bank on the financing of the acquisition of rolling stock for a new shuttle service to a major Spanish airport.
- Advising Spanish private equity funds on fund financings under Spanish and English law.
- Hispasat: advising on the financing with ECA facilities for the construction and launch of several satellites.
- Banco Santander: advice on the financing of a wind farm in Australia, with ECA support from the turbine supplier.
- Bank of Shanghai: advice on its potential participation in a bank syndicate, as finance party to and purchaser under an agreement for the assignment of credit rights arising from a Mexican law governed construction contract.
- Export Import Bank of China: advice on the Spanish law aspects of financing granted in favour of a Chinese company. The purpose of the financing was the acquisition by the Chinese company of listed share capital of a major hotel company in Spain.
- An Australian pension fund: advice on an investment (term loan) in the infrastructure sector in Spain.
- Advice to a syndicate of commercial banks on the financing of the Bahía de Bizkaia Gas (BBG) liquefied natural gas terminal.
- European Investment Bank: advice on the refinancing of two toll roads and on the financing of several renewable energy projects.
- Advice to commercial banks on the financing of a regasification plant in Spain.
