deals
AGD Norte - Tia Supermarkets MIGA
Lehman Brothers
Athlon
Group Deal
i8 What'sNewS Issue 7'July 1999
Rabobank's operations in Argentina
have recently concluded three impor
tant deals. The first is between MIGA, a
subsidiary of the World Bank, and our
Rabobank trading Argentina SA arm. In
order to set up local business, Rabobank
trading Argentina is importing capital
from Rabobank Cura^ao. The amount of
USD 50 million is being brought into Ar
gentina under an insurance policy by
MIGA that provides coverage for 90 per
cent of the country risk (primarily transfer
and appropriation) for a period of 15
years. This is the first such transaction be
tween Rabobank and MIGA, which has
done business with competitors ING and
ABN Amro for many years. The insured
sum is significant, representing 15 percent
of MIGA's total exposure on Argentina.
Other offices like Turkey may now also
seek MIGA coverage. New York's trade fi-
nance group led by Stuart Barrowcliff was
crucial to the generation and execution of
the plan. Separately, Argentina co-
arranged a USD 275 million medium term
note (MTN) facility to Norte-Tia, the
largest supermarket chain in the country.
Rabobank retained USD 21 million of the
facility. The deal was concluded in a very
short time with the help of the London
forfeiting desk, which sold the associated
country risk. Finally, we fully arranged
RI's global credit trading group
(GTCG) recently created a structured
warehousing solution to meet the funding
and balance sheet requirements of an
important customer, Lehman Brothers,
one of the largest originators of
commercial mortgages in the US. The deal
will involve a total annual volume of USD
8 billion, consisting of the funding of
loans originated via a bankruptcy-remote
special purpose company (SPV). This SRV
is funded by Rabobank's purchasing a
note which is then hedged via a total
return swap with Lehmans. The swap is
arranged in order to achieve an AAA
rating from Moody's Investor Services on
the underiying loans. The structure
offered our cliënt significant cost savings
and also off balance sheet treatment for
accounting purposes. GTCG London was
aided by Kevin King of the New York
Branch, and underpinned with help from
a number of R1 entities ranging from legal
through tax and operations. By beating
out major competitors, we improved our
reputation in the market and demon-
strated an ability to deliver highly
complex structured deals.
Standing (Left to Right): Christophe Bellinger,
MIGA; Inge Skjelfjord, Rabobank Washington,
D.C.; Peter Jones, MIGA; Stuart Barrowcliff,
Rabobank New York; Anne Marie Thurber,
MIGA; Erik Heyl, Rabobank Buenos Aires;
and Roger Pruneau, MIGA.
Sitting (Left to Right): Motomichi Ikawa, MIGA;
Chris Abbenhuis, Rabobank Buenos Aires;
and Carmen Nonay, MIGA.
and managed a USD 95 million syndicated
short term trade finance facility for Aceit-
era General Deheza (AGD), the leading
Argentine crusher and exporter of soy anc
sunflower seeds, and its largest exporter ot
peanuts. This generates strong up-front
fees and good annual margin income, and
is notable as the first syndication com-
pleted in the wake of recent financial mar
ket turbulence in Argentina. Moreover, it
marks the begining of five important new
banking relationships in Argentina.
Rabo Securities recently lead managed
the syndicate associated with the
issue of 3.5 million new shares in Athlon
Group NV, a fast-growing company that
is the leading non-bank player in auto
leasing within the Netherlands and
Belgium, and is also strong in the auto-
dealerships, rental and body repair
markets. The deal was initially valued at
EUR 80 million and included a green shoe
option of up to 15 percent. The proceeds
will be used to fund expansion through
current and prospective acquisitions, to
refinance a subordinated loan, and to
strengthen the Athlon balance sheet. The
company recently bought De Lage Landen
Translease in Germany, CB Location of
France, Nederland Service Lease, and the
Mercedes-Benz dealer Baan. During the
bookbuilding period, June 16-23, shares
were sold to institutional investors in the
Netherlands, Belgium, the UK, Germany,
and Switzerland, with a small remaining
portion being placed with retail investors
in the Netherlands and Belgium.
