Category: Regions

Roberto del Cueto takes up his seat as the fifth board member at Mexico’s Central Bank, Banxico, following his confirmation by the Senate last week. The position has been vacant since the end of last year when Jesus Marcos Yacaman stepped down. Del Cueto was formerly president of the National Banking and Securities Commission and was nominated for the vacant seat by President Felipe Calderón after his first nomination for the post, Carlos Hurtado, was vetoed by the Senate earlier this year.

Corporación Durango, the Mexican paper and packaging company, has received tenders for $359.7m of around $420m in notes due 2012 as part of its debt buyback exercise, the company said on Friday. The company will pay 103.125% of principal amounts of its Series B senior secured notes tendered by the early payment deadline last week, including a 3.125% early participation payment. The tender offer expires on July 19. Durango will be issuing new debt to fund the refinancing package. Merrill Lynch is managing the transaction.

Private equity firm Advent International is acquiring the housing business subsidiaries of Corporativo Javer, one of the largest privately held home builders in Mexico in Advent’s largest leveraged buyout in Latin America to date. Advent is the lead sponsor and will assume majority control of Javer. Co-investors include Morgan Stanley Alternative Investments and two European institutions, Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft and the Netherlands’ FMO. The deal, which is not closed, will be funded with a combination of equity and debt, for an undisclosed amount. Merrill Lynch has been tapped to lead the financing.

Controladora Milano, Mexico’s largest discount clothing retailer, has acquired Melody, the leading women’s retailer in Mexico with an undisclosed financing package of debt and equity provided by Latin American private equity firm Advent International and Milano’s other shareholders. Banamex provided the debt financing. The value of the transaction was not disclosed. Combined, the companies have 2006 pro forma revenue of $382 million and operates more than 375 stores in over 125 cities in Mexico. Advent acquired Milano in May 2006 in the first mid-market private equity transaction in Mexico to use cash-flow-based debt. Over the last 12 months, Advent has funded three add-on acquisitions and made four new investments, including most recently Pronto!, a consumer credit company, and La Mansión, an operator of casual dining restaurants in Mexico. In Brazil, two of its portfolio companies have done IPOs recently: Brazilian bank Paraná Banco and duty-free operator Dufry South America, both of which floated on the Bovespa.

Mexican oil giant Pemex is looking to improve the terms on two $1.25bn revolving credit facilities. One two-tranche facility, with 3- and 5-year maturities, led by Barclays in July 2005, pays around Libor plus 40bp on the longer tenor, according to bankers away from the deal. The second line, a 3-year facility, was launched in May 2006 via Calyon, and pays 27.5bp over Libor. New terms are expected this week. Barclays, Calyon and BBVA are leading.