With investors still clamoring for both yield and new names, Bolivia will meet investors ahead of what could be its first international issuance in decades. The sovereign received a Fitch upgrade to BB minus this month, and picks up plans it announced earlier this year. Bolivia will meet in investors in the US, Europe and LatAm Monday through Friday of next week. Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs are managing the process, having been initially picked for the job in March. Targeting a $500m 10-year benchmark, the government originally wanted a June-July sale, but put it off due to European volatility and domestic nationalization moves making headlines. For Bolivia, a transaction is not a question of needing financing, but one of re-establishing a presence in the international bond market, with its last international foray in the early part of the 20th century, making a new bond essentially a debut. Bolivia is rated Ba3/BB minus/BB minus.
Category: Regions
Peru Holds Rates
Peru’s central bank has held rates at 4.25%, in line with market expectations. The decision takes into account supply-side pressures on inflation, near-potential economic growth and uncertainty in the external markets, the bank says in a statement.
Agencies Concerned About Corpbanca Move
S&P and Moody’s see possible negative credit consequences from Corpbanca’s agreement to acquire 100% of Colombia’s Helm Bank for $1.28bn announced this week. S&P has placed Corpbanca’s BBB+ ratings and Inversiones CorpGroup Interhold’s BB ratings on negative watch, it says, and Moody’s has changed the outlook Corpbanca’s Baa1 mark and CorpGroup Interhold’s Ba3 to negative from stable, it says. Noting the potential impact of increased exposure to Colombia, S&P plans to evaluate the impact of the acquisition on Corpbanca’s capital position. Moody’s expects “negative pressure on the bank’s financial fundamentals as a result of its second large cross border bank acquisition in less than 12 months.”
Bancolombia Gets Half in Bond Exchange
Investors holding 50.12%, or about $200m of Bancolombia’s 2017 bonds accepted an offer to exchange them for 2022s, the bank says. In an offer closed last week, Bancolombia offered new 5.125% 2022 subordinated bonds for the 6.875% 2017 subordinated bonds, at a rate of a rate of $1,135 per $1,000 principal amount. The bonds are the same as those sold for cash in a $1.2bn September offering. The Baa3/BBB minus lender sold the 2022 Tier 2 bonds in September at a 5.20% yield through the same banks. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citi and Morgan Stanley managed both the sale and tender.
Colombia Wraps up Investor Meetings
Colombia has wrapped up with investor updates in Hong Kong and Singapore, though there are no imminent plans to issue, Maria Fernanda Suarez, Colombia’s public credit director, tells LatinFinance. Any deal would have to be cost effective, especially in the Japanese market, she notes, and prefunding might be attractive. After pricing a global TES transaction last month, Suarez says Colombia may elect to issue the $300m left under its financial plan via an opportunistic trade. The country’s financing needs for 2013 will be around $2bn. The COP1trn ($559m) 2023 bond transaction last month allowed the republic to print its second largest-ever global TES issue and attain its lowest coupon for a local currency denominated issuance.
AMX Files Yen Shelf
America Movil has filed a 2-year JPY150bn ($1.91bn) bond shelf in Japan, according to a source familiar with the filing. There were no immediate details of any first issuance. Bank of Tokyo, Mizuho are the banks working on the process. The Mexican telecom sold its first yen-denominated bond last year, raising JPY12bn in the Samurai market. Mitsubishi UFJ-Morgan Stanley and Mizuho managed that sale, which included a 3-year JPY6.9bn yielding 1.23% and a 5-year JPY 5.1bn yielding 1.53%. AMX is rated A2/A/A, and also has an A rating from Japan Credit Rating Agency.
Sicrea Reopens MXP Bonds
Mexico’s Sistema de Credito Automotriz (Sicrea) has sold MXP300m ($23m) in the local bond markets. The reopening of its 2017 receivable-backed domestic bonds priced at TIIE+157bp, inside of the TIIE+160bp level of the original sale. The transaction saw about MXP700m in demand, with some 70% of the participants repeat investors, according to a source familiar with the transaction. ING managed the transaction, rated AAA on a national scale. Sicrea, an association of Nissan dealers which provides auto loans, sold MXP1bn of the bonds in the original deal.
Duratex Launches Tablemac Tender
Brazil’s Duratex has launched an offer to buy up to 12% of the publicly traded shares of Colombia’s Tablemac, it says. As part of its plan to eventually obtain as much as 52% of the industrial wood panels specialist, it will look to spend as much as COP48.72bn ($27m) to buy up to 4.06bn shares at COP12.00 each, it says. The offer will take place October 17-30, with allocations November 1. In May Duratex agreed to buy 25% of the Tablemac for $56m, at the same price. Under the agreement in May, Duratex can, within the next 2 years, opt to buy another 15% at the same per-share price adjusted by an annual rate of 6.25%.
Paraguayan Bank Prices Bond Retry
Banco Continental Paraguay has priced a $200m bond, mirroring the terms it got in an initial attempt to complete an international sale in June. The bank’s debut, and the second-ever issuance from a Paraguayan borrower, drew more than $550m in orders. The Ba3/BB minus 2017 priced at par with an 8.875% coupon to give a yield in line with 8.875%-area guidance that followed low 9.000% whispers. Investors comfortable with the zip code drawn in by the attractive yield and scarcity value. The bank priced a similar sale in June, which the leads elected not to settle due to the impeachment of President Fernando Lugo rattling the markets. With the change in leadership bringing less political instability than initially feared, a return was always in the lender’s plans. This time, the issuer was able to cut short its roadshow, which had been scheduled to run through today. Bank of America Merrill Lynch managed the sale, the second ever from a Paraguayan, according to Dealogic data. BBVA Paraguay raised a $100m 2016 in February 2011. The sovereign is also considering its first foray into the international markets, having met investors on a 2-day roadshow last month.
Nissan Dealers Set to Reopen ABS
Mexico’s Sistema de Credito Automotriz (Sicrea) is expected to reopen its 2017 trade receivable-backed domestic bonds for MXP300m ($23m) today. In the original deal in May, Sicrea priced MXP1bn of the bonds at TIIE+160bp. ING is managing the transaction, rated AAA on a national scale. Sicrea is an association of Nissan dealers which provides auto loans.