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Katherin Diaz Velilla

Katherin Diaz Velilla

Co-Founder

LAW Corporate & Commercial

Bogotá, COLOMBIA

+57 3015402709

katherin.diaz@vyvasociados.co

International tax attorney and strategic advisor with 12+ years across Colombia\\\'s DIAN, Ministry of Finance, Senate, Presidency, and EY. Co-founder of V&V Asociados. Specializes in cross-border tax structuring, transfer pricing, FinTech & digital economy regulation, and high-impact tax defense. Forbes Founders \\\"Top Entrepreneur to Follow 2025.\\\" Columnist, International Tax Notes.
+ Detailed Bio

Katherin Díaz Velilla is a Colombian corporate lawyer and international tax strategist with over 12 years of experience spanning the public and private sectors in Colombia and Latin America.

She is the Co-Founding Partner of V&V Asociados, a boutique advisory firm based in Bogotá specializing in international tax structuring, regulatory strategy for the digital economy, and strategic tax defense.

Katherin\\\'s career is defined by a unique combination of insider regulatory knowledge and private sector leadership. She served as an attorney at Colombia\\\'s Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales (DIAN) for eight years, where she specialized in international taxation, transfer pricing, and high-complexity tax matters for the energy and financial sectors. She subsequently served as an advisor to the Colombian Senate, the Ministry of Finance, and the Presidency of the Republic on fiscal and regulatory matters — directly participating in the drafting and analysis of national and international tax legislation.

In the private sector, she served as Business Tax Manager at Ernst & Young (EY), leading tax consulting projects for companies in Oil & Gas, technology, and financial services before founding V&V Asociados.

Her current practice focuses on four core areas: (1) international tax planning and corporate structuring for companies expanding within and beyond Colombia; (2) regulatory strategy for FinTech, crypto, AI, and digital economy businesses; (3) strategic tax defense and litigation before the DIAN, the Consejo de Estado, and the International Chamber of Commerce; and (4) public-private advisory and regulatory impact analysis.

Katherin is a columnist at International Tax Notes — the world\\\'s leading international tax publication — and at Ámbito Jurídico (Legis), Colombia\\\'s primary legal reference. She is the founder of Visión Expandida, V&V Asociados\\\' editorial platform on international taxation and digital regulation, and of Altea Academy, an executive education initiative focused on high-level decision-making in tax and regulatory matters.

She is a doctoral candidate in Law at the Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), holds a Master\\\'s degree in International Tax Law from the Universidad de La Rioja (Spain), and holds an Executive Certificate in Economic Leadership for Mining from the University of British Columbia (Canada). Additional certifications include OECD Transfer Pricing, UN-FLACSO, University of Michigan, and Leiden University programs.

Katherin is a member of the Instituto Colombiano de Derecho Tributario (ICDT), the Tax Criminal Law Observatory at UBA, and Women in Mining Colombia. She is an angel investor in FinTech startups and an active speaker and conference presenter at national and international universities and industry events.

She lectures at the Universidad del Rosario, Universidad Libre, Universidad de La Sabana, Universidad Santo Tomás, Universidad Sergio Arboleda, and UNIR (Spain), and has been a keynote speaker at the International Tax Congress of the Universidad de Chile.

+ Languages
English, Spanish
+ Notable Clients
  • Trii — Colombia\\\'s leading investment FinTech (500K+ users; backed by Bancolombia, Y Combinator, Harvard University)
  • Movistar Arena Bogotá/Venues Colombia — Colombia\\\'s largest entertainment venue
  • UPSIDE — Renewable energy company (UK parent, Colombian operations)
  • Dapper — RegTech platform, 6-country LATAM regulatory monitoring
  • Global 66 — Chilean FinTech SEDPE operating in Colombia ($543M USD transacted in 2025)
  • Banco Digital Público — State-backed digital banking institution, Colombia
  • Pygma — LATAM\\\'s leading FinTech accelerator (60+ portfolio companies); strategic ally and advisory partner
  • LQ Capital Group LLC — International capital and investment group
  • Santuario Hostels — First Colombian SME to issue equity through the Bolsa de Valores de Colombia (BVC)
  • Scholarium SAS — EdTech platform, Colombia
  • FVC SAS — Digital content and infoproducts company
+ Representative Matters
  • Designed and implemented international holding structure and intercompany model for Colombia\\\'s leading FinTechs, backed by Banks, Y Combinator, and Harvard, covering cross-border taxation, withholding taxes, and integration across LATAM.
  • International M&A tax advisory for  Colombia\\\'s largest entertainment venue involving evaluation of cross-border corporate restructuring.
  • Cross-border structuring and share transfer advisory for multiple UK-based renewable energy company with operations in Colombia, including IED registration and intercompany alignment.
  • Structuring of international operations and LLC incorporation for investors, covering U.S. and Panama jurisdictions with multi-party tax planning.
  • Regulatory strategy and international tax planning for RegTech platform operating in 6 LATAM countries, and for multiple FinTech clients.
  • Soft landing advisory for multiple foreign companies entering the Colombian market, including legal vehicle selection, DIAN registration, transfer pricing policy design, and Banco de la República foreign investment registration.
  • High-impact fiscal defense matters involving DIAN audits, transfer pricing controversies, and criminal tax defense for corporate clients in the technology distribution and services sectors.
  • International tax and corporate structuring for a high-volume crypto trading client, covering offshore structures, withholding, and FATCA considerations.
  • Advisory on the Colombian Compañías Holding Colombianas (CHC) regime for multiple clients seeking to centralize LATAM investments through Colombia as a holding jurisdiction.
+ Certifications And Awards

Awards & Recognition

  • \\\"Top Entrepreneur to Follow 2025\\\" — Forbes Founders & Founders Insiders
  • Outstanding Woman Entrepreneur — Revista Factor del Éxito, Edition 9, Colombia (2023)
  • Columnist — International Tax Notes (world\\\'s #1 international tax publication)
  • Columnist — Ámbito Jurídico, Legis Colombia
  • Expert source — Valora Analitik, Actualícese, Notinet, Canal 1

Professional Affiliations

  • WONE Global Law — Member Firm (V&V Asociados)
  • Instituto Colombiano de Derecho Tributario (ICDT)
  • Tax Criminal Law Observatory — Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA)
  • Women in Mining Colombia (WIM)
  • VGV Corporate — Strategic Alliance
  • Faroo Legal — Strategic Alliance

Academic Appointments

  • Lecturer & Thesis Director — Universidad del Rosario (Tax Law)
  • Lecturer — Universidad Libre, Universidad de La Sabana, Universidad Santo Tomás, Universidad Sergio Arboleda
  • International Lecturer — UNIR, Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (Spain)
  • Conference Speaker — International Tax Congress, Universidad de Chile

Certifications & Education

  • Master\\\'s in International Tax Law — Universidad de La Rioja, Spain (2015)
  • Executive Certificate, Economic Leadership for Mining — University of British Columbia, Canada (2024)
  • Diploma in Tax Compliance — Universidad de Buenos Aires (2022)
  • Transfer Pricing Certification — OECD (2020)
  • Certificate, Public Budgeting with Gender Focus — ONU-FLACSO (2024)
  • Programs: University of Michigan, Leiden University, ESAP