Saudi dairy company Almarai has acquired Argentine farm operator Fondomonte for SAR13m ($83.19m), in a transaction that gives Almarani a source for animal feed. The Saudi company financed the transaction with a combination of operational cash flow and funds from Islamic banking facilities, the company says. Officials at Fondomonte could not comment on acquisition details and Almarai officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Fondomonte controls three farms with an combined extension of 12,306 hectares where it produces soybean and corn.
Category: Middle East
Posted inDaily Brief
Qatar Buys Into Santander Brazil
Santander has agreed to sell a 5% stake in the Santander Brasil unit to Qatar Holding in the form of $2.72bn in convertible bonds. The mandatorily convertible 6.75% 3-year notes come with an exchange price of BRL23.75. The deal with the sovereign wealth vehicle will help Santander Brasil reach its goal of a 25% free float by 2014, Santander says. Last year’s BRL12.3bn IPO of the Brazil unit floated about 15%. Santander Brasil closed Monday at BRL24.53.
Posted inDaily Brief
ABC Brasil Raises Tier 2
Banco ABC Brasil has sold $300m in Tier 2 bonds in its debut dollar market issue. The Ba1 rated mid-sized corporate credit specialist controlled by the Arab Banking Corporation priced the 2020 at 98.311 with a 7.875% coupon to yield 8.125%, or UST plus 428.8bp, in line with 8.125% area guidance. The book reached more than $600m, according to bankers on the deal, with more institutional participation than had been anticipated. The deal went 32% to European accounts, 31% to North America, 22% to LatAm, and 15% to Asia, a banker on the deal says. A very small percentage sold to the Middle East. Buyers include 32% fund managers 23% private banks, and 24% banks. ABC had met investors last year and again in February, before visiting the US, Asia, Europe and the Middle East immediately preceding the deal. The bank had been heard aiming for $200m-$250m. The bond traded up about 0.5 points Wednesday afternoon, according to investors. HSBC, Itau, and Santander were joint bookrunners on the 144a/Reg S trade.
Posted inDaily Brief
Carlyle Purchases Mexican Retailer
The Carlyle Group has bought Arabela, a door-to-door retailer of beauty products, from Procorp and Advent International, a private equity firm, for an undisclosed amount. Executives at the private equity firms and Arabela said in a release that the process marks a transition into a second stage of growth for the company, which was founded in 1991 by Procorp. There will apparently be no changes in senior management. Scotia Capital provided the acquisition financing.