Category: Equity

Brazilian airline Azul, which began work on an IPO last year, has agreed a private capital raise with existing shareholders, a move that may be followed by others. Azul’s shareholders have agreed to subscribe BRL240m of newly-created class B preference shares, according to minutes of a shareholders meeting published on Tuesday. The notes will automatically convert to ordinary shares ahead of an IPO by Azul. Such private capital raises are likely to be increasingly common as markets face continued volatility, said one ECM banker. “In this market, why not — and its shows the controlling shareholders have confidence in the company,” the banker said on Tuesday. Azul filed for an IPO in May last year, to raise cash for expansion and debt repayment, but cancelled the plan in August after Brazil’s stock market tumbled in the intervening months. The Ibovespa has recuperated from the 45,044-point low it reached in early July, but at 47,840 points on Tuesday it was still 20.8% lower than where it traded a year ago.

Banco de Chile’s share sale was heard to be oversubscribed on Tuesday, with a particularly strong bid coming from local investors. The share price is due to be released today. LQ Inversiones Financieras is the seller in the all-secondary deal, and offered to sell 6.7bn shares. That would cut the majority shareholder’s ownership to 51%, from 58.4%, of the firm. Banco de Chile’s American Depositary Shares — equal to 600 common shares — closed at $74.95 on Monday, down from $83.65 the day LQIF announced the sale. Citi was global coordinator, and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, BTG Pactual, and Deutsche Bank were bookrunners. Banco de Chile is the country’s largest lender with a 19.3% market share. It reported assets of CLP25,261bn ($50.1bn) at the end of the third quarter.

Alfa is considering changing the banks that will lead a planned IPO of Sigma Alimentos once the food producer closes a planned acquisition, the firm’s chief financial officer Ramon Leal told LatinFinance. Sigma closed a $1bn, 5-year senior unsecured facility earlier this month to finance an acquisition bid for Spain’s Campofrio Food Group. The Mexican firm also filed for an IPO in November, hiring Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Banorte-Ixe, Citi and Goldman Sachs. “Now with the results of the Campofrio financing we will reassess the participants in the IPO,” Leal said. Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi led the syndicated loan, with mandated lead arrangers Bank of America Merrill Lynch, BBVA, BNP Paribas, Citi, Credit Agricole, HSBC, ING, JPMorgan, Mizuho, Natixis, Rabobank and Sumitomo Mitsui. EDC is heard to have joined as a lead manager and Banco de Sabadell Miami Branch as an arranger. Under the acquisition plans, Sigma and Hong Kong-based Shuanghui International, which already own 82% of Campofrio, and are offering €6.90 a share in the tender for the approximately 18.7m shares they do not own. The acquisition, which is pending authorization, is expected to close in the next few months, following which work on the IPO documentation will resume, said Leal. The IPO could take place in the third quarter, he said.

Brazilian e-commerce firm B2W has secured a BRL2.38bn ($984m) capital increase from its majority shareholder, Lojas Americanas, and investment firm Tiger Global Brazil. Lojas, a retailer which owns 62.23% of B2W, has agreed to put BRL1.022bn towards the capital raise, and to pick up unsubscribed shares. Tiger has said it will buy at least BRL495m — and up to BRL1.2bn — in the capital raise. B2W will use the funds to pay back debt and invest further in the business.

The owners of Brazilian real estate developer Brookfield Incorporacoes are considering “strategic alternatives”, including delisting the firm or launching a rights offering, the company said on Monday. Brookfield Brazil Participacoes, the controlling shareholder, is likely to announce its decision within 120 days, it said.

CorpBanca will settle its COP306bn ($153m) purchase of Helm Bank preference shares on Tuesday. Holders of the hybrid notes in the Colombian bank tendered 99.38% of the 572m preference shares outstanding in a public offer that closed last week. Corpbanca will pay COP538.67 ($0.28) per share for the notes. Bancolombia was financial advisor. Corpbanca agreed to buy Helm in October 2012 for $1.28bn.

Brazilian fleet rental and sales company Unidas canceled a planned IPO on Friday. The issuer had postponed the deal in November for the 60 day period allowed under Brazilian regulations. It had filed for the IPO in July. Although Unidas had not given a size target, it had BRL205m ($90m) Ebidta in 2012. BTG Pactual, JPMorgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Espirito Santo were working with Unidas, which sought the funds for growth.

Spain’s Grupo Bupa Sanitas was expected to launch a bid for control of Chile’s Cruz Blanca Salud today with a tender offer for up to 56% of the firm. In line with plans announced in December, Bupa is offering CLP525 ($0.97) per share, and is targeting a minimum of 50.1% of the firm, equal to 360m shares. Cruz Blanca’s shares closed at CLP485.8 on Wednesday. The offer is open until February 21. Banchile is arranging the transaction.

Grupo Gigante plans to price its MXN4.3bn ($324m) IPO of Office Depot de Mexico on February 5, according to regulatory documents filed this week. The borrower is planning to sell 253m shares, excluding a greenshoe or hot-issue allocation, at between MXN16 and MXN18 apiece according to documentation filed on Monday. BBVA Bancomer and Credit Suisse are arranging the all-secondary sale. The deal will cover the remainder of a $342.9m bridge loan that Gigante took out to take full control of Office Depot de Mexico last year.