Pinheiro Neto Advogados has helped US private equity firm HIG Capital acquire Brazilian vehicle filter maker Tecfil.

Tecfil hired Cascione Pulino Boulos & Santos Advogados. The deal closed on 1 October with no value disclosed.

Auto filters are used to remove impurities and solid particles from oil, fuel or air. Tecfil operates the largest auto filter manufacturing business in Latin America. It exports to 27 other markets.

International private equity firms have been taking advantage of the devaluation of assets caused by Brazil's 2015-2016 recession. A strong dollar against the real has also helped. Last month, Brookfield acquired a car-leasing company in Brazil for US$176 million and closed a US$498 million real estate investment deal, swapping assets in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro with a real estate fund owned by Brazilian bank BTG. Local outfit IG4 Capital has also been busy, signing a 400 million reais (US$101 million) joint-venture deal with a Canadian company to develop waste management services in the country.

Lawyers say the same trend applies to the region as a whole. However, they also warn that political and economic instability in major economies like Argentina and Brazil is encouraging some private equity investors to refocus their efforts on more stable countries like Colombia, Chile and Peru.

Counsel to HIG Capital

Pinheiro Neto Advogados

Partners Henry Sztutman and Eduardo Paoliello, and associates Cauê Rezende Myanaki, Daniel Fernandes Kulcsar Junior and Luiza Baltazar Scotini Junior

Counsel to Tecfil

Cascione Pulino Boulos & Santos Advogados

Partners Eduardo Boulos and Luca Salvoni, and associates Luiz Eduardo Corradini and Lucas Markan