When Banco de Credito del Peru (BCP), the South American country’s largest bank, was bidding for the mandate to list the shares of a long-standing client, the bank’s chief executive, Walter Bayly, thought the task would be a relatively simple one. It turned out to be anything but, as international rivals offered the prospective issuer not only the opportunity to float in Peru, but also in Chile and Colombia. BCP won the deal, but the battle it faced made it clear that issuers and deal markets do not look at Peru in isolation, but as part of a promising Andean region.
“Both on the issuer and the investor side, it is very clear that the market is very much integrated already,” says Mr Bayly. The example shows just how crucial BCP’s regional strategy is. The lender has acquired Chilean investment bank IM Trust in April this year and Colombian investment brokerage Correval in November 2011.
