Clairfield and Antarctica team up with new office in Chile

New York-based M&A advisory firm Clairfield International has opened an office in Santiago de Chile, its 35th worldwide. The company has partnered with Miami-based Antarctica Advisors International, and will be locally known as Clairfield/Antarctica. The partners will operate in the space of investment banking, as well as in corporate finance in the agribusiness sector.

The office marks the firm's fifth in Latin America, joining Clairfield's other offices in Brazil and Mexico. The move is a substantial step for the firm in the region. Clairfield International — a consortium of multiple corporate finance firms — closed over $5.5 billion worth of transactions in 2015. According to rankings by Thomson Reuters, Clairfield is the world's 21st most important mid-market M&A consultancy.

Managing Partner at Antarctica Ignacio Kleiman announced that “the opening of our new office in Santiago significantly strengthens and expands our firm’s capabilities in South America, where many of the most important food companies maintain a presence.” Antarctica focuses on international transactions and boasts particular expertise within the regional seafood industry, having worked with Camanchaca, AquaChile, Congelados Pacifico, Cooke Aquaculture, Nippon Suissan, and Robinson Crusoe.

Clairfield's interest in partnering with Antarctica stems from their extensive track record of deal origination and successful deal execution in Latin America. Together, Clairfield/Antarctica has according to the co-founders a "unique position" in regards to servicing the seafood industry's corporate finance needs. The office will support Clairfield/Antarctica’s growth within the region and will be run by Fernando Araya.

Araya has worked in investment banking for over 20 years. Previously, he was a general manager at Rabobank Chile, where he led the bank's local corporate finance/M&A team. Prior to joining Antarctica, he started a local firm providing independent financial advisory services to multinational food companies in South America.

“The opening of our new office in Santiago, Chile significantly strengthens and expands the firm’s capabilities in South America. We are extremely pleased that Araya has agreed to lead this office as Country Head,” said Kleiman.