Americas

This week in Keeping Tabs: what a Biden administration means, the people behind the BioNTech vaccine, the link between commercial property and bank equity, and a proposal for dealing with debts in poor countries.

Convertible bond issuance in the Americas is poised to top $100bn in 2020 as the year enters its final straight and companies look to use the momentum of Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election and the prospect of a working Covid-19 vaccine on the near horizon to raise capital.

Marcelo Delmar, a veteran of Latin American bond markets, has joined Morgan Stanley’s debt capital markets team in New York, GlobalCapital understands.

Panamanian toll road operator Empresa Nacional de Autopistas (Ena) notched up what one observer called a “slamdunk” debut deal on Thursday and swiftly traded higher in the grey market. But the lack of primary activity from Latin American heavyweight borrowers was puzzling some bankers.

Latin American bond bankers said that Mexican telecoms company Total Play Comunicaciones’ debut bond issue on Monday — the second Mexican high yield deal since the onset of Covid-19 — was an encouraging sign for other issuers from the country.

A Joe Biden White House offers an opportunity for international and regional multilateral financial institutions to lobby for extra financing to deliver essential assistance to countries hit by Covid-19, according to experts.

Bristol-Myers Squibb and Verizon took advantage of surging demand for high grade corporate bonds this week to print multi-billion dollar trades to fund mergers and acquisitions and future investment.

Argentina’s second largest city, Córdoba, said on Wednesday that holders of 83.79% of its bonds had agreed to its consent solicitation — enough to trigger the collective action clause and enable the issuer to restructure the entire $150m note.

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (Cabei) said it became the first multilateral lender to sell a Covid-19 “vaccine bond” after raising $50m of five-year money to support immunisation initiatives when Covid-19 vaccine becomes available.

HSBC Canada plans to issue its inaugural deal in euros and though the bond is not expected until next year at the earliest, there is a possibility that other Canadian banks could pre-fund before Christmas if strong market conditions last.

Ontario Teachers’ Finance Trust (OTFT) is preparing to issue its inaugural green bond under its new framework aligned to the International Capital Market Association’s Green Bond Principles.

Though the bond market reaction to the impeachment of Peru’s popular president was not as severe as it would have been in most Latin American countries, investors said that political volatility would continue to challenge the sovereign’s credit profile and that the situation presented risks for next year’s elections.