South America

Venezuela has become the first sovereign nation to launch a cryptocurrency. While few outside Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro’s administration are impressed by the pioneering venture, others are expected to follow suit nonetheless, write Lewis McLellan, Costas Mourselas and Oliver West.

US market volatility has kept Latin American primary bonds silent for nine straight business after what had been a record start to the year. But even though EM borrowers from other parts of the world are this week pricing deals, Lat Am bankers are in no hurry to bring new debt issuance from the region while the volatility persists.

Banco Supervielle, the Argentine lender, is looking to increase the size of its existing bond shelf from $800m to $2.3bn, according to a regulatory filing.

The UK Embassy in Peru and Bolsa de Valores de Lima (BVL), the Lima Stock Exchange, have launched plans for what would be the first green bond market in South America, following a similar initiative in Mexico.

New issue markets in Latin America took a pause this week, but DCM bankers covering the region were not overly concerned as recent deals issued amid the volatility began to gain ground.

Two Latin American companies on the path to recovery from precarious situations have found themselves somewhat stuck in their liability management efforts because of tougher conditions in new issue markets.

Peruvian agricultural company Camposol has cancelled a tender offer for existing notes after market conditions led it to delay a new bond sale, but Lat Am bankers are not overly pessimistic about prospects for primary markets.

Aluar, the Argentine aluminium producer, will look into the possibility of issuing local or international debt after the company’s board of directors approved a $300m bond shelf.

Brazilian steel producer CSN (Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional) has more than halved the size of a planned tender offer after completing a smaller than intended bond issue last week amid market volatility.

Four Latin American issuers ventured into cross-border markets on Thursday after a deceptively calm Wednesday, only to be faced with a wave of volatility that had investors worried and led to wider pricing.

Bond market participants said on Wednesday said that Latin American issuers could return in force on Thursday after another day of calm in markets.

Bankers observing South American development bank CAF’s return to euro markets on Tuesday suggested that the multilateral had done well to push through equity market volatility with its largest ever euro deal.