Latin America

Government-owned lender Banco Nacional de Costa Rica (BNCR) will use cash to finance a buy-back for a portion of senior bonds maturing in 2023, sources close to the borrower told GlobalCapital on Tuesday.

The world’s largest independent McDonald’s franchisee, Arcos Dorados, is planning to tap its senior unsecured bonds due 2027 as it looks to refinance debt raised to tackle the Covid-19 crisis.

Consorcio Transmantaro, the Peruvian transmission company and one of the few Latin American issuers to have improved its credit profile this year, is turning to bond markets for the first time since April 2019 to finance investments.

Banco Hipotecario, the Argentine bank focussed on mortgage and consumer loans, is asking holders of a dollar bond maturing in less than three months to swap their paper for a new 2025 bond and cash. If bondholders do not accept the terms, default is likely, says Moody’s.

Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer began investor calls on Tuesday as it prepares its first new issue since several ratings downgrades earlier in the year.

At least 12 Argentine provinces are either deep in restructuring talks with bondholders or are preparing to begin negotiations. But as Argentina’s finance minister Martín Guzmán calls for regional governments to renegotiate their debts in line with the federal government’s sustainability guidelines, investors are unlikely to grant the same level of debt relief they agreed with the sovereign.

Argentina’s foreign law exchange bonds will go free to trade this week and offer early clues as to how markets are likely to value the newly restructured credit, after some promising but inconsistent signs emerged from grey market trading last week.

An IMF agreement that surpassed all expectations triggered a rally in Ecuador’s exchange bonds after they went free to trade this week, although analysts warn that February’s presidential election represents a major event risk.

Three Latin American companies announced plans this week to issue dollar bonds, as market participants say they are expecting Monday to kick off a hectic September in primary markets as issuers look to get ahead of potential US election volatility.

Ex-Barclays banker joins Finsbury to develop equity advisory — Laubjerg hired for natural resources at HSBC — Rousseau leaves Deutsche and joins Citi

Banco Lationamericano de Comercio Exterior (Bladex), the Latin American trade finance bank, began investor calls on Wednesday ahead of its first dollar benchmark in five years.

Brazilian bank Itaú has hired from the Latin American debt capital markets team of a rival bank to replace its outgoing debt syndicate head.