BofA-ML Aims to Be Local

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch’s new balance sheet-equipped banking platform will focus its efforts on local markets, including Mexico, Brazil and Chile, where it has fully staffed offices. Countries like Colombia, Peru and the Caribbean region will also be targeted for corporate banking and the more sophisticated markets and investment banking businesses, Sonia Dula, head of LatAm corporate and investment banking tells LatinFinance. The bank may one day offer local currency loans. “Local currency lending will be a component [of our offering in Brazil] but we are currently focused on global cross-border capabilities,” says Patricia DelGrande, head of corporate banking for the Americas. “Today we would need to start with dollar lending and move into offering local currency lending,” she adds. Local bonds will also continue to be a focus, says James Quigley, president of the LatAm business. “We’re committed to expediting the local capital markets. When we do a [Mexican] peso bond – that’s important to me,” Quigley tells LatinFinance. Indeed, Mexico offers the most succinct picture of what the bank envisions for other local offices, say BofA-ML officials. BofA already had a presence in Mexico, where it did syndicated lending and corporate banking, and Merrill’s local broker accounts for a large portion of equity trading there, says BofA-Merrill. The 2 businesses have been fully merged successfully, the banks claim. In Brazil, an abundance of exporters and commodity companies makes trade-related lending a compelling product too, says DelGrande. “I see opportunity in global trade finance, particularly for Brazilian companies, given their growth profile and the diversification of their exports,” says the banker. Before it announced plans to be folded into BofA, Merrill said it was targeting rising second-tier names for its client roster. That strategy remains intact, claims Quigley, noting BofA-Merrill is mindful of the mid-cap sector’s high growth rates and continues to c