Cleary Gottlieb represented the syndicate of underwriters, including Bradesco BBI, BB Investimentos, Santander Investment, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs and UBS, in the $3.7 billion initial public offering of Companhia Brasileira de Meios de Pagamento (VisaNet Brasil), the Americas’ largest IPO thus far in 2009. The IPO was a secondary offering, including both a public offering in Brazil and an international offering pursuant to Rule 144A and Regulation S. The offering, which was conducted on the São Paulo Stock Exchange (the Bovespa), closed on July 1.
Cleary Gottlieb’s work on this IPO exemplifies the firm’s preeminence in advising on matters at the forefront of the global economy: not only those stemming from the financial crisis, but also those that signal the revitalization of the global capital markets. It also showcases the firm’s strength in the Brazilian market where Cleary Gottlieb has worked on over 20 IPOs in the last three years and has advised on some of the largest-ever capital markets transactions, including representing Vale last year on its $11.45 billion equity offering, which remains the largest equity offering ever made by a Brazilian company.
VisaNet Brasil is the company in charge of merchant relations for Visa System affiliates and for all Visa card transactions performed in Brazil, unifying and developing new solutions of capture and carrying through the financial liquidation. In addition to managing the affiliation process and merchant relations, VisaNet also helps other financial institutions and private labels with their electronic transactions by developing and providing monitoring, capture and processing services.