Senior Solutions, a provider of IT and outsourcing services to Brazilian banks, has filed for a registration with domestic securities regulators. The move is often the first step in an IPO or the sale of debentures in the public market. A company official declines to discuss whether the company has any transaction plans. The firm reports gross revenues of BRL41.9m ($23m) in 2011, up from BRL40.5m in 2010 and just BRL14.9m in 2006. It has received growth funds from BNDESPar and private equity fund Stratus.
Category: Equity
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Fibra Uno Reopens for $700m
Mexico’s Fibra Uno has priced a MXP8.88bn ($699m) reopening of its domestic real estate income trust, known as a Fibra. The fund sold 325m new shares at MXP23.75 each, for an MXP8.88bn size, assuming the exercise of a 15% greenshoe. The price represents a 3.1% discount to Wednesday’s MXP24.50 closing. The sale raises funds for Fibra Uno, the only Fibra launched since the creation of the asset class, to acquire new properties. The retap may be a good sign for the Fibra market, bankers say, as it raised substantially more than the MXP3.17bn IPO held last year. Santander and BBVA were global coordinators, with Credit Suisse also on an international 144a/RegS portion and Protego and Actinver on a domestic portion. In January, Fibra Uno – put together by a group of property owners led by CEO Andre El-Mann – agreed with real estate investor MexFund to acquire up to 23 properties in exchange for shares in the Fibra, allowing the total portfolio to reach as many as 40 properties. Starting with 16 at the time of the IPO, Fibra Uno added a 17th last year, and counts on MXP3.6bn in revolvers to help fund acquisitions. Its assets include industrial, commercial, office, and mixed-use properties located throughout Mexico.
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Fibria Sets FO Timetable
Fibria plans to start roadshowing an expected BRL1.46bn ($802m) equity follow-on March 30, ahead of an April 19 pricing, according to a prospectus. The Brazilian pulp producer plans to sell 86m shares, meaning a BRL1.46bn deal, based on Wednesday’s BRL14.73 close and assuming the exercise of a 15% greenshoe. The sale would be the first offering under the new Fibria name, though both Votorantim Celulose e Papel and Aracruz were longtime Bovespa members, and is done to raise funds for repaying debt and general purposes. Following the sale, the ownership should remain the same, according to the prospectus, with 30% each stakes for Grupo Votorantim and for BNDESPar, and 40% to other shareholders. Itau and Bank of America Merrill Lynch are global coordinators, with Banco do Brasil, BTG Pactual, Deutsche Bank and Santander as bookrunners.
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Colombian Steelmaker Advances FO
The board of Acerias Paz del Rio has approved the sale of 9.05bn shares in an equity follow on. The steelmaker that is part of Brazil’s Votorantim group does not indicate the amount to be raised, though it had been said to be looking for at least $100m-equivalent. Corredores Asociados is managing the sale.
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Camargo Aims to Delist Developer Unit
Brazil’s Camargo Correa plans to spend up to BRL180m ($100m) to acquire all outstanding shares of its Camargo Correa Desenvolvimento Imobiliario real estate unit, it says. The conglomerate plans to hold a public tender offer to acquire all of the 38.25m shares, representing 33.85%, that it doesn’t own, for up to BRL4.70 each. It doesn’t disclose a timetable for the public offer.
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IFC Sees More Strategic Plays
There should be more opportunities for IFC equity investments in LatAm M&A transactions, especially regional companies expanding cross border, an official tells LatinFinance. The multilateral lender took a $200m stake in Grupo Suramericana to help the Colombian financial group purchase ING’s pension assets last year, and is open to other similar opportunities going forward. “Sura is a regional player looking to become a pension operator across countries, something that governments need. They are in the region to stay, and not going anywhere. We have seen the emergence of these kinds of companies,” Giri Jadeja, the IFC’s senior manager for LatAm and the Caribbean, says. The IFC has a position in Colombia Davivienda, another regional player expanding across borders, and potentially expanding banking to a greater portion of the population. “We are very encouraged by this and therefore we have made a change in our strategy and are looking to support [such companies],” he adds, noting that there could be other opportunities as more Europeans consider strategic exits from the region.
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Regional PE Fundraising Up, Investment Down
LatAm and the Caribbean private equity fundraising reached $8.4bn in 2011, increasing from $5.6bn in 2010, according to the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA). This is out of a $38.5bn EM total for the year. LatAm appears to be loading up for a new round of PE buying, after a more challenging environment at the end of last year. However, the region’s private equity investment for 2011 was $3.2bn, down from $6.6bn in 2010. Most of the investment continues to go to Brazil, with the country’s private equity investment for 2011 at $2.5bn versus $4.6bn in 2010. It’s totals are less than China ($10.5bn) and India ($6.2bn).
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Batista to Put Cash in OSX
Eike Batista plans to put $1bn in equity into his OSX shipbuilding company, OSX says, fulfilling a put option agreement that was part of its March 2010 IPO. In addition to Batista’s own money, he may use financing to fulfill his pledge, having agreed to BRL1.8bn ($1.0bn) in two-year loans from Bradesco and Itau, according to OSX. Separately, Batista’s EBX Group has struck a joint venture deal with global catering company the Newrest Group, EBX says. The new venture, NRX-NEWREST, will focus on offering catering services to airlines and railways as well as off-shore and remote operations for the oil sectors and others in Brazil. In 2011, Newrest posted $800m in worldwide sales.
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Isolux Withdraws Brazil IPO
Spanish infrastructure company Isolux Corsan has withdrawn registration documents for the IPO of its Brazil-based Isolux Infrastructure unit, according to the CVM. It had filed for the deal last year, via Credit Suisse and Santander. Isolux Infrastructure operates road concessions, transmission lines and solar energy plants in Brazil, India, Italy, Spain, the US, Mexico and Peru, and transferred its headquarters to Sao Paulo last year to focus on EM expansion. Proceeds from the primary share-only sale were destined to go towards investments in transmission and road concessions, and also for working capital and repaying debt. It has been active in Brazil since 2000, and the country accounts for 50% of the EUR7.5bn ($10.8bn) of projects the company is developing worldwide.
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Copec Spends $300m in Colombian Tender
Chilean fuel distributor Compania de Petroleos de Chile (Copec) has increased its stake in Colombian distribution company Proenergia to 98.24%, after spending COP519bn ($295m) in a public tender offer, it says. As part of its ongoing takeover of Colombian fuel distributor Terpel, Copec has bought 55m shares at COP9,280 each, in the offer launched February 27 and closed March 9. Copec has said plans to use its own resources to fund the purchase, and says it has $125m-equivalent in credit guarantees from three Chilean banks. Proenergia controls 52.78% of Sociedad de Inversiones en Energia, which in turn controls Terpel. Corredores Asociasos managed the tender process. Copec acquired an initial 47.2% stake in Proenergia when it bought the assets of AEI in Colombia last year, and has been adding to it since, including buying a 10% position held by Corficolombiana.