Santander Chile is having selective one-on-one meetings this week to get participation on a $125m 18-month loan priced at Libor+80bp for Aa3 risk. Bankers say it compares favorably to Corpbanca’s 95bp for a BBB+ 2-year, but European demand is expected to be very limited. “It doesn’t make sense to lend at Libor plus 80bp to a competitor when you are paying more than that to borrow,” says a banker not on the deal. Standard Chartered is the lead.
Category: Loans
Posted inDaily Brief
Votorantim Signs Pre-Export
Groupo Votorantim has raised $1.04bn billion in a pre-export loan through its Votorantim GMBH unit. A $620m 8-year tranche pays Libor plus 2.25%, and a $420m 7-year piece pays Libor plus 2.10%. Proceeds will be mainly used to repay loans maturing in the next 3 years, the Brazilian conglomerate says. A debt management strategy in place since 2009 focused on lengthening the maturity profile. Banco do Brasil, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, BBVA, Citi, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Itau, JPMorgan, Santander and Societe General are listed as joint lead arrangers.
Posted inDaily Brief
Brazilian Vies for Top I-Bank Spot
The investment bank fee pool is almost double last year’s haul and equity is generating a substantial portion, putting Itau in pole position to take the regional lead ahead of mostly US and European contenders. The bank has amassed $61m in revenue in the year to June 11, some 10% share of the total $614m wallet, Dealogic data show. By the same time last year, Itau was sixth, with $17m (5.3%), when the total LatAm revenue pool was $320m. Most of Itau’s income ($43m) comes from ECM, which the Brazil-based bank dominates with a 19.8% share. And Itau is the only top 3 bank by revenue to get global coordinator billing on the year’s biggest equity trade, a $25bn+ issue from Petrobras. Once that deal is done, Itau has a good chance of beating Credit Suisse, which sits atop the fees table for the year to June 11 with $82m (13.4%). Third-placed JPMorgan, with $49m (7.9%) credit so far, is the only bank in the top 3 with a coordinator role on a BRL10bn equity follow in from Banco do Brasil. The latter should boost the fees standing of fourth-placed Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Credit Suisse comes top for M&A fees year to date, with $27m (11.3%), and also leads DCM ($18m, 13.8%). This year should see further swelling of in the total regional fee pool, investment bankers say. However, the second half looks tough in terms of politics and contagion from global markets, highlighted by the European sovereign crisis. LatAm capital markets participants also bemoan the fact that besides heightened competition for deals – there are several new banks chasing LatAm league table credit – issuers are splitting fees between a greater number of underwriters.
Posted inDaily Brief
Peru Gets CAF Loan, IDB Support
Peru and multilateral bank CAF have signed a $300m loan for rebuilding after natural disasters including earthquakes and floods. The loan has an 18-year term, a 4-year grace period and Libor-based interest rate. Separately, the IDB has approved a $50m loan for Peru to finance reforms to improve business productivity and competitiveness. The loan has a 1-year maturity, a grace period of 5 years and pays interest based on Libor.
Posted inDaily Brief
TACA Lands Tighter High Yield Loan
Central American airline TACA has closed a $100m 5-year structured loan syndication through Citi paying at 600bp over Libor, tight to 625bp initial pricing. The amortizing deal has 1 year of grade and an average life around 3.2 years. Some 16 banks were heard signing on, most of them from Central America. The deal was pulled last year and was adjusted in price to reflect tighter prevailing market conditions. The facility will be repaid primarily by airline ticket sales using a trust structure based in Panama to isolate the payment streams. The transaction was heard well oversubscribed. Chadbourne & Parke was counsel to Citi, which acted as admin agent and lender.
Posted inDaily Brief
Grupo R Gets 9 Banks in Loan Syndicate
Grupo R has closed its $225m 5-year platform syndication through BBVA with 9 banks on board. Joint bookrunners and MLAs are BESI, Natixis, NIBC, Societe Generale, Unicredit and WestLB. MLAs are Credit Industiel et Commercial and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, while ITF came in as a senior lead arranger. It pays Libor plus 375bp in the first 2 years, 400bp in years 3-4, and 425bp in the fifth year, with up-front fees of 300bp. BBVA was financial advisor and admin agent on the deal, which it says was oversubscribed. The transaction supports the acquisition of PetroRig III, an ultra-deepwater semi-submersible drilling rig that will operate under a lease with Mexico’s Pemex. PetroRig III is a sixth generation ultra deepwater semi-submersible mobile offshore drilling unit of Friede & Goldman ExD Design. It is designed to operate at a water depth of 7,500 feet and drill up to 40,000 feet, and was built by the Jurong Shipyard in Singapore.
Posted inDaily Brief
Oaxaca I Launches $150m Club
BBVA and Santander are leading a $150m 7-year project deal for the Oaxaca I wind farm in Mexico. A banker not on the transaction but familiar with the sector estimates a price of 350bp-400bp over Libor. Bankers on the deal decline to talk about the margin. Banobras and Spain’s Instituto de Credito Oficial are expected to join, but the mini perm deal will likely not be opened up to other institutions, says a banker on the deal. “We will sign and close towards the end of June,” adds the banker. Cobra, a subsidiary of Spain’s Grupo ACS, is constructing the project, which has a PPA with the CFE and a $220m total cost. Oaxaca I will be followed by Oaxaca 2, 3 and 4, say bankers, who expect the sequels to raise $450m in debt between the 3 projects. Spain’s Acciona apparently won the bidding for those deals, bankers say. The new flurry of Mexican wind projects follow a $375m package for the Eurus wind farm in Oaxaca, which included a 15-year senior loan paying around 450bp over Libor. The financing includes a $325m IFC A/B loan and a $50m IDB tranche. Banco Espirito Santo, BBVA, DEG, Proparco, Bancomext and Nafinsa are involved, while Banobras and CFE are heard to be participating. The transaction is expected to close next month.
Posted inDaily Brief
Swiss Bank Tops IB Fee Chart
The LatAm investment banking fee pool has doubled in size versus this time last year, and Credit Suisse is cleaning up, according to the latest data from Dealogic. Credit Suisse has amassed $77m in fees, or 14% of the LatAm IB market through May 7. The total commission pot has swelled to $554m, versus just $261m in the January 1-May 7 2009 period, and $1.6bn for the full year 2009. Volume data suggests Credit Suisse is making most of its money in M&A and equity. It has booked $17bn credit from 8 M&A deals and $1.2bn from 9 equity trades year-to-date, says Dealogic. Both are sharp increases year-on-year. Credit Suisse’s overall ranking represents a near tripling in revenue versus this time last year, when it was third with $26m. Also rising on the fees chart is Itau, in second place with $56m, or 10% share, up from sixth with $12m (5%) in 2009. Most of the Brazilian bank’s volume is in equity, where it is top of the region with $1.3bn from 9 deals, versus just $651m from 1 trade last year. By fees, Citi has dropped to seventh this year with $27m (4.9%), from first by this stage in 2009, when it had $31m (11.8%). JPMorgan is now third ($46m, 8.3%), versus second last year ($30m, 11.4%). For overall IB revenue, new entrants to the top 10 this year are BTG Pactual (5th, 6.4% share), Bradesco (6th, 5.0%) and Deutsche (10th, 4.6%). BBVA, Rothschild and HSBC have dropped off the top 10 for LatAm fees. For M&A, bigger players missing from the top 10 this year are UBS, BNP and Itau, while Barclays fails to make the DCM cut. M&A volume has more than doubled, while DCM is 90% larger this year. By volume, Credit Suisse leads M&A ytd, JPMorgan is again top for DCM, Itau dominates ECM and Citi is leading a shrunken loan market, Dealogic data show. This year should see an increase in the fee pool, investment bankers say. However, the second half looks tough in terms of politics and contagion from global markets, highlighted by the European sovereign crisis. LatAm capital markets p
Posted inDaily Brief
Citi and Deutsche Join PDVSA Loan
Citi and Deutsche participated as lead managers on a $1.5bn 3-year amortizing trade-related loan for PDVSA at Libor+450bp, says a banker on the deal. The pair is the sole Wall Street participation on the facility through China Development Bank and Banco Espirito Santo, which is dominated by Chinese and Venezuelan lenders. The others on the list are senior lead arrangers Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, BANDES and China’s Bank of Communications, lead arranger Agricultural Bank of China, arranger Banco do Brasil, and lead managers Banco Nacional Ultramarino, China Minsheng, FOGADE, Mercantil Commerce Bank, Banco Provincial, Banco de Comercio Exterior, Bancaribe Curacao, Banco del Orinoco, Banesco, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and China Postal Savings Bank. The deal has an average life of 1.9 years, says the banker on the deal.
Posted inDaily Brief
Oaxaca Wind Farm Takes Off
Banco Espirito Santo and BBVA are leading a 15-year senior loan paying around 450bp over Libor, part of a $375m package for the Eurus wind farm in Oaxaca, says a banker on the deal. The financing includes a $325m IFC A/B loan and a $50m IDB tranche. The size split between the A and B portions has apparently not yet been finalized. DEG, Proparco, Bancomext and Nafinsa are involved, while Banobras and CFE are heard to be participating. The transaction is expected to close next month. Total project costs are estimated by the IFC at $536m for construction of the wind farm and related transmission assets. The IFC had planned to invest up to $55m in senior debt for its own account, and approximately $20m in subordinated debt. The 250MW project is being developed by AE, part of the energy division of Spain’s Acciona, which owns 94%. The off-taker and 6% shareholder is Cemex. Eurus is a special purpose vehicle for the development, construction and operation of the wind farm and associated transmission assets in the La Venta Ejido, Juchitan de Zaragoza municipality.