FRANCISCO PICÓN
Francisco Picón Gutiérrez has been Of Counsel at Puga Ortiz since 2026. Hispractice focuses on foreign investment, strategic projects, and regulated sectors, with a particular emphasis on mining and on connecting opportunities across Chile, Latin America, and the Middle East.
He holds a law degree from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (2016), a Master’s degree in Constitutional Law from the same university (2021), where he received the Alejandro Silva Bascuñán Legacy Award for the highest academicperformance in his class, and a Diploma in Strategies for Public Policy from theUniversity of Chile (2022). He is the author of the book “(In)Admissibility, Exclusive Initiative and Public Budget: Effects on the Balance of Budgetary Powers and theLegislative Process“, published by Hammurabi Ediciones.
Before joining Puga Ortiz, he served as InvestChile’s Investment Commissioner forthe Gulf Region, based at the Embassy of Chile in Riyadh, where he wasresponsible for the strategy to attract foreign investment into Chile from SaudiArabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and other Gulf markets. In that role, he led the identification of investment opportunities and engagement with sovereignwealth funds, business conglomerates, and public authorities.
Previously, he was part of InvestChile for nearly four years, first as a lawyer and later as Chief of Staff, working on investment promotion, institutional coordination, engagement with authorities, and advisory support for foreign investors.
He also held legal roles at the Undersecretariat of Social Services of the Ministry ofSocial Development and Family, the Ministry of Finance, and the National Board ofSchool Aid and Scholarships. He also worked as a public affairs consultant at Extend Comunicaciones, where he advised companies and trade associations onregulatory, legislative, and institutional engagement matters.
His professional background combines experience in foreign investment attraction, government affairs, regulatory analysis, public law, and the design of strategies forcomplex projects in regulated sectors.
