Americas

US investment banks have set a high bar for their European rivals by posting record revenues powered by a boom in capital markets underwriting.

The relentless flow of special purpose acquisition companies coming to the market is causing unease among investors about market saturation, with $140bn raised so far this year. Only the highest quality sponsors are likely to succeed in bringing new Spacs to IPO from now on, writes Aidan Gregory.

GlobalCapital is conducting its annual poll to determine its Bond Awards 2021. The voting deadline has been extended until April 22, so we invite readers who have not voted yet to do so in the coming week.

Andean Telecom Partners (ATP), a digital infrastructure provider operating in the Andean region of South America, has begun investor calls ahead of what would be its inaugural bond issue.

Latin American oil and gas company GeoPark will hold investor calls until Monday next week as it prepares to reopen a 2027 bond sold last year in order to partially finance a tender offer for up to $255m of its of $425m of 6.5% 2024s.

Southeast Asian tech company Grab, which offers everything from ride hailing and food delivery services to digital wallet payments, is planning to go public on the Nasdaq by merging with Altimeter Group Corp, a special purpose acquisition company (Spac).

Colombian bank GNB Sudameris sold a Basel III-compliant subordinated tier two bond on Tuesday after two failed attempts in 2020. The issuer, which also has operations in Peru and Paraguay, printed $400m of 10-year non-call five paper but only after having rejigged its bank group after last year’s cancellations.

Banco Davivienda is preparing what would be the first additional tier one (AT1) bond issue from Colombia’s banking sector, with the country’s second largest lender having begun investor calls on Monday ahead of a proposed perpetual non-call 10 year Basel-III compliant AT1.

CMI Energía (CMI), the renewable energy subsidiary of Central American conglomerate Corporación Multi Inversiones, is looking to debut in international bond markets with a senior secured green deal two and a half years after pulling its first attempt.

Colombian bank GNB Sudameris held investor calls on Monday ahead of a proposed Basel III-compliant subordinated note that could be priced as soon as Tuesday. This will be GNB’s third attempt to issue in the past year.

Semrush, the Boston-headquartered marketing software company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange last month during a tricky time for the IPO market. CFO Evgeny Fetisov talks to GlobalCapital about the IPO and the challenges in taking the firm public.

SSA borrowers are out in force in the dollar market, hitting screens with mandates alongside a pair of US Treasury auctions. Uncertain dynamics in the Treasury market will mean these auctions are well-watched for any repeat of the disappointing February seven year and the volatility it sparked.