Credit Suisse First Boston bought Brazil’s Garantia in 1998 after its traders came unstuck in the Brady bond market. The years immediately following were tough as Brazil’s currency fell out of its peg and it had to borrow from the IMF.
Today the capital-raising environment in Brazil is the best anyone can remember. “Over the last two years, we have seen a window of opportunity open up for Brazilian companies to tap the market for debt and equity on a scale we haven’t seen for a while and with valuations that we haven’t seen ever,” says Antonio Quintella, CSFB’s Brazil country head.
