BTG Pactual’s public-sector franchise is anchored on people, proximity and purpose. Over the review period, the bank created a dedicated public-sector and infrastructure coverage desk that links treasury, investment banking and global markets specialists in São Paulo, Mexico City, Bogotá, Santiago, Lima and New York.
That platform gives ministries, state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and municipal utilities a single point of contact while drawing on the expertise of more than 7,000 professionals across the region and the global hubs of London and New York. This high-touch coverage has translated into record wallet share and a series of landmark mandates.
During 2024, BTG provided a full spectrum of solutions for sovereign and sub-sovereign clients. BTG combined balance-sheet lending with capital-markets execution to deliver R$3.4 billion ($700 million) of blue and sustainable debentures for Águas do Rio, the concession that is bringing potable water and sanitation to 10 million residents of metropolitan Rio de Janeiro.
Working as sole lead bookrunner, BTG structured a four-tranche deal with tenors up to 18.5 years, project-finance guarantees and an Aegea parent-support facility, earning an AA+ local rating and attracting strong demand from treasuries, institutional and retail investors. In renewable energy, the bank arranged the first incentivised green debenture for Neoenergia’s Morro do Chapéu wind complex, at R$432 million, aligning tax benefits with COP-aligned KPIs and opening a new funding channel for Brazil’s largest private utility.
BTG’s ability to combine advisory, lending, markets and research in one integrated offer makes it the go-to partner
Furthermore, 2024 saw the bank undertake transformational capital markets financings. BTG was global coordinator on the R$14.8 billion ($2.7 billion) follow-on for Sabesp, Latin America’s largest water utility, controlled by the state of São Paulo. The deal – booked simultaneously under CVM 160 in Brazil and an SEC registration in the US – was the region’s biggest equity transaction of 2024 and at the core of Sabesp’s privatisation.
BTG also engineered a novel governance accord between the state and strategic investor Equatorial, under which both parties accepted a five-year lock-up, giving minority shareholders confidence in the company’s transition while delivering a 29.5% premium for the state’s shares. In Mexico, the bank was sole global coordinator for the Ps7.1 billion (374.5 million) follow-on of Xinfra, the country’s only listed infrastructure platform spanning toll roads, energy and water assets – providing fresh capital to public-service projects while bringing AFORE pension funds into long-duration equity.
Finally, the bank provided market-leading liquidity, transaction banking and risk-management support. BTG underpins public-sector balance sheets every day – with its fixed-income desk ranked top three by Brazil’s banking association Anbima for distribution – and arranged more than R$160 billion of local bonds in 2024, many for state and municipal issuers.
Treasury solutions range from customised swaps to same-day liquidity lines that let sanitation companies synchronise grant receipts with contractor payments. Meanwhile, a 24/7 public-sector FX team executed more than $5 billion of hedges for ministries and SOEs, insulating essential-service budgets from currency volatility of the peso and real.
BTG’s ability to combine advisory, lending, markets and research in one integrated offer makes it the go-to partner for Latin America’s public sector – and the clear choice for this year’s award.
