Banco Santander CIB’s steady progress in Brazil – by far Latin America’s biggest market for financing – coincided with a greater emphasis on local markets financing in 2023. The bank’s sweet spot, straddling local and international debt capital markets, as well as loan financing, meant that it had a very strong year across various debt segments. According to Dealogic, Santander CIB – which is led in the region by Rafael Noya, global head of global debt financing – was the leading underwriter of domestic DCM throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, helped by a second place in Brazil, where it took a 9% share of local issuance. Santander’s local strength was also supported by a strong showing in international DCM.
It was the combination of strength in local and international funding that enabled Santander to convince clients that the bank was agnostic in terms of tapping different pockets of liquidity that drove many of its mandates. In Brazil, there were 125 offerings, worth R$40 billion ($7.28 billion) in total. Importantly, Santander participated in many of the landmark transactions of the year, such as Electrobras’ R$7 billion, five-year debenture. The deal was structured as an infrastructure bond and attracted blow-out demand of R$12.9 billion.
Santander was also lead bookrunner on the R$4.2 billion securitization of creditor rights by Companhia Energética de São Paulo. It can point to capability in the important tax efficient securitization market, such as CRAs (Dexco’s R$1.5 billion deal), CRIs (Rede D’Or for R$1.5 billion), FIDCs (Quero-Quero’s R$300 million issue) and commercial notes (a R$600 million debenture for Unidas).
Meanwhile, Santander’s international DCM performance in Brazil is also improving, with 10 transactions worth a total of $16.1 billion for Brazilian corporates and the sovereign. The latter’s mandate was as global coordinator in the debut environmental, social and governance issuance from the Republic of Brazil, in which Santander took the lead on designing the framework process of what became a $2 billion, seven-year deal.
In Peru, Santander CIB was bookrunner in a $2.5 billion-equivalent sustainable local-currency transaction in the international markets. In Chile, it was lead arranger in financing for Codelco’s desalination plant, supported Solatity in the financing of the acquisition of green assets into its energy portfolio, and provided debt financing for Metka-EGN’s investment in four solar plants.
Banco Santander CIB was the leading underwriter of domestic DCM throughout Latin America and the Caribbean
In Colombia, Santander was part of the $2 billion bond for Ecopetrol that was issued to pay the outstanding principal of its loan from the Colombian government that financed its acquisition of Interconexión Eléctrica. The final book reached $3.5 billion from nearly 250 accounts. Also in Colombia, the bank was bookrunner and sustainable bond agent for a $400 million sustainable bond for Grupo de Energía de Bogotá that financed the company’s 2023 to 2027 investment plan.
Santander’s growing credentials in the sustainable financing space dovetail with the bank’s strength in project financing. In Brazil, the bank worked on more than 20 lending and advisory mandates in the transportation sector, enabling over $8.5 billion in new investment and advising clients in the structuring of $1.8 billion. In Peru, the project finance team was sole lead arranger in a number of important local financings including: a senior secured term loan facility for Global Infrastructure Partners to finance the acquisition of a 50% stake in Tramarsa; a $150 million senior unsecured term loan facility to Vitapro; and a senior secured term loan facility to HIG Capital for its financing of the merger of Randsa Comericial and Transportes Centroamericano del Futuro.
As well as providing loan and debt financing, Santander also provided guarantees such as the two green guarantees for Conexión Kimal-Lo Aguirre that covered the construction of a 1,342-kilometre energy transition line in Chile.
