Category: People

Clean Energy Brazil (CEB), a UK-listed investment company, is considering a Bovespa IPO, according to its CEO, Marcelo Junqueira. CEB invests in integrated sugar and ethanol production units in Brazil. It already has ordinary shares and warrants listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Andre Esteves is leaving UBS following a brief stint running global fixed income to start a new global investment fund worth up to $3bn. The former CEO and chairman of UBS LatAm – who was recently demoted from a global role after the Swiss bank scaled back its risk profile – is taking 12 former Pactual executives with him, following months of speculation of a split. UBS bought Pactual in 2006 amid great fanfare, but its Brazilian staff swiftly became disenchanted with the move as the global bank was dragged down by huge subprime losses. The new fund, which will employ global EM hedge and private equity strategies, will target an initial raise of $2.5bn-$3.0bn, say people familiar with the initiative. Fundraising could begin by year-end. Esteves is joined by 12 UBS Pactual staff, including Roberto Sallouti, an MD and head of fixed income for LatAm, as well as James Oliveira, a senior executive in UBS Pactual’s treasury group, which does prop trading. Most of the departures will be from the prop trading group, whose role was dramatically diminished following a decision at the UBS’s head office to reduce risk and focus purely on client-facing fixed income, say bank officials. Rodrigo Xavier, head of UBS Pactual’s asset management business, will replace Esteves as chairman and CEO of Brazil, while Juerg Haller will become chairman and CEO of UBS LatAm. Esteves is expected to formally announce his new venture by July. Until a month ago he ran the ailing Swiss bank’s global fixed income, currencies and commodities business.

Petrobras plans to significantly increase its leverage ratio over the next several years as it raises funds necessary to extract oil from its most recent discoveries. CEO Jose Sergio Gabrielli says the state-controlled producer can expect to eventually have a 25%-35% debt ratio, up from 17% at the moment. He adds that Petrobras will announce the amount it needs to raise when it details a revised strategic plan in the second half of the year. The official does not see a big change in the sources Petrobras will use for funds – bonds, loans, and export credit financing. “The difference is Brazil is investment-grade and we can tap different investors, but the approach is the same,” Gabrielli says, speaking at a New York presentation sponsored by the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce. Petrobras plans to raise $5bn this year, and is widely expected to issue soon to cash in on the sovereign upgrades and a non-deal roadshow in March.

Ford is planning $3bn in Mexico investments, including production of a new subcompact Fiesta model and revamping two plants, according to wire reports. CEO Alan Mulally says the Cuautitlan plant, near Mexico City, will start building the Fiesta in early 2010 for export to the US, according to Reuters. The investment also includes a joint venture with Getrag JV for a transmission plant in the central state of Guanajuato. “Ford is investing $2.4 billion and $600 million is from our suppliers,” says Mulally, according to Reuters.

Merrill Lynch, in announcing an internal move, is underscoring its commitment to LatAm as a major opportunity. “Latin America is a critical growth market for us,” says Merrill chairman and CEO John Thain. Merrill has been the most aggressive recruiter recently in Brazil, where it joins US heavyweights like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs in a battle to wrest share from established mainly European and domestic shops. The fee pool looks set to shrink significantly this year – based largely on the IPO drought – raising the stakes in this increasingly competitive market. The firm meanwhile appointed James Quigley president for LatAm and Canada. He was formerly vice chairman, executive client coverage group; president, Merrill Lynch International and head of LatAm global markets and investment banking. In the newly created role, Quigley will report to Gregory Fleming, president and COO of Merrill Lynch, and be responsible for driving the firm’s business and operating strategies in LatAm and Canada. He will oversee wealth management, sales and trading, origination and principal investment, Merrill says.

Brazilian pulp and paper giant Suzano is planning a $2bn expansion of its cellulose capacity, CEO Antonio Maciel tells LatinFinance. The project, which is likely to be announced in the coming months, should add two new lines of cellulose, Maciel says. Financing for the initiative will be done with cash on hand, suppliers and export credit agencies. The new project, along with Mucuri, which is already underway, will help Suzano boost cellulose production to 1.7m tons by 2009, from 974,000 tons in the last 12 months, says the company.

NET, the Brazilian pay-TV provider, is close to acquiring BIGTV, a national network with customer bases in several Brazilian cities around the country, CEO Jose Antonio Felix tells LatinFinance. The purchase will cost NET roughly $200m, says the CEO, who adds that the acquisition is part of a plan to grow the customer base. The deal is expected to be sealed by July. NET has annual revenues of BRL3.0bn, while BIGTV’s are BRL100m, according to a December 31 filing. JPMorgan advised NET on the transaction.

The newly merged Brazilian exchange BM&F Bovespa said late Tuesday its board has selected Gilberto Mifano to be president and Edemir Pinto to be CEO. Mifano is the former CEO of the Bovespa and Pinto is the former CEO of the BM&F. The combined exchange is the third largest by market cap and LatAm’s biggest.

LatAm ABS specialist Michael Lucente has resurfaced in Indonesia three months after quitting Merrill Lynch following a 10-year stint there. He has been appointed CEO at PT Bakrie & Brothers, an Indonesian company with interests ranging from property to telecommunications, reporting to president director Nalinkant Rathod. But that does not mean Lucente, who will continue to be based in New York, is leaving LatAm. “We are very interested in investments in the region,” the banker tells LatinFinance. “Several are under consideration,” he adds. PT Bakrie has holdings with a current market value of more than $6bn. At Merrill, Lucente was responsible for EM structured finance and held various senior positions, most recently MD, principal finance.