Latin America

Peru’s largest commercial lender Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP) raised $850m of 10-year non-call five tier two bonds on Friday, offering what some bankers saw as a slim pick-up to its senior debt on the back of a nearly four times subscribed order book.

Two of Mexico’s best-rated issuers eased through bond markets this week, even as the country faces ever-worsening economic forecasts, while bankers said Latin America’s top names could issue multiple times this year.

Banco Internacional del Perú (Interbank) joined its larger peer Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP) in the new issue pipeline on Thursday as it announced plans for a new tier two deal

Uruguay’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic — so far, superior to the majority of crisis-hit Latin America — helped it issue $2bn-equivalent of bonds on Wednesday with a very slim new issue premium on its inflation-linked peso notes and a negative concession on a dollar tap.

Bolivia will be forced to abandon plans to raise crucial funding in bond markets, the country’s public credit head has told GlobalCapital, after its Congress passed a bill that requires the government to seek approval from the legislative branch on the terms of the issue, amid a tense political climate.

Mexican real estate investment trust (Reit) Fibra Uno pulled a proposed dollar Eurobond issue on Wednesday as investors said they believed the issuer may have underestimated the importance of the bid from US Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs).

Uruguay raised $2bn-equivalent of debt on Wednesday — the bulk of which came from a rare inflation-linked local currency issue — to become the final investment grade Latin American sovereign to tap international bond markets in the coronavirus era.

DCM bankers said that Mexican personal care products maker Kimberly Clark de México (KCM) was from the ideal sector for this market after it tightened pricing on a new issue sharply despite a difficult day in global markets.

Bankers said that Chilean cable company VTR had catered for both emerging markets and high yield bond buyers as it raised $1.15bn of new bonds across two heavily oversubscribed tranches on Wednesday.

Mexican real estate investment trust (Reit) Fibra Uno’s plans to return to bond markets were shaken on Tuesday when the issuer delayed pricing “as part of company protocol” when an earthquake hit the country.

Uruguay-headquartered Navios South American Logistics on Tuesday notched a $500m 10-year bond that left the company with a far more comfortable debt maturity profile. But Navios had to improve terms for investors — and wait a week after it first announced the issue — to get the refinancing done.

BBVA is the latest large European bank to have suffered a ratings downgrade during the Covid-19 pandemic, with Fitch having moved the issuer’s debt ratings down by a notch blaming a weaker operating environment in Mexico and Spain.