Rio de Janeiro – A survey conducted by the Brazilian Association of Financial and Capital Market Organizations (Anbima) has shown that mergers, acquisitions, public offerings and restructuring of partnerships in Brazil up until September this year totalled 116.7 billion reals (US$ 68.2 billion). There was growth of 33.4% over the same period of 2008, a result similar to the one recorded in 2007, which was 141.2 billion reals (US$ 82.5 billion).
To the economist Carolina Lacerda, in charge of the Anbima Sub-Committee of Mergers and Acquisitions, the international financial crisis has generated opportunities and needs that have been seized by the large Brazilian companies. On the other hand, according to her, the climate of uncertainty has prevailed among medium and small companies, leading them to postpone their investment decisions.
“The main difference is that there was a larger number of mergers and acquisitions between Brazilian companies, rather than foreign companies buying assets in Brazil, which used to happen in the past,” said the economist to news agency Agência Brasil.
The survey also showed that 32.8% of the operations consisted of deals worth more than 1 billion reals (US$ 584.6 million). During the same period of last year, this type of transaction accounted for 19.3% of the total. “Large operations are the ones that continue to take place during the crisis. The smaller ones become somewhat retracted due to the climate of uncertainty,” stated Carolina Lacerda.
The food industry, as a result of mergers between companies JBS Friboi and Bertin, and Sadia and Perdigão, led mergers and acquisitions from January to September 2009, having accounted for 45.5% of the financial volume. The second largest was the pulp and paper industry.
The Anbima expects to end the year with similar figures to those of 2007. For 2010, the optimism is maintained, as the crisis has made assets cheaper. Furthermore, the good moment of the Brazilian economy and the country’s hosting of events such as the 2014 FIFA Soccer World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games encourage consumption and the flow of funds. “Thus, we are expecting even greater growth in 2010,” she said.
Carolina Lacerda also claimed that next year should see many mergers and acquisitions in the banking sector, especially in medium-sized banks, and acquisitions of foreign banks by Brazilian banks.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
