Nubank raised an additional $400 million to finance its expansion in Brazil and Latin America, in an operation that places the institution among the most valuable lenders in the country. Valued at $25 billion, it is slightly ahead of XP and only behind Itaú/Unibanco, Bradesco and Santander, according to Thursday’s close. The investors’ bet put a lot of pressure on Nubank, which is not a profitable business yet.
Source: Valor International
Brazilian data analysis multinational Semantix announced the acquisition of 51% of the API management platform LinkAPI. The acquisition of total capital, valued in R$100 million, will take place in three years. In addition to starting acquisitions, Semantix is looking for its next investor. Bradesco’s Inovabra Ventures fund and private equity manager Crescera Capital are already minority investors. According to Leonardo Santos, CEO and co-founder of Semantix, Credit Suisse was hired to seek investors. The company had revenues of R$200 million in 2020, an increase of 80% compared to 2019, thanks to contracts with retail and financial companies.
Source: Valor International
Diageo’s sales in Brazil jumped 33% in the six months ended in December 31. The spirits and beers maker, owner of brands like Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Tanqueray and Ypióca, attributes the performance to the recovery of consumption and the replacement of stock levels by distributors and retailers. Worldwide, sales fell 4.5% over the same period in 2019, to 6.9 billion pounds, mainly because of the unfavorable exchange rate. The company continues to promote its global program to support bars and restaurants struggling because of the pandemic. Businesses in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Recife and Fortaleza are benefiting from the initiative for which the company allocated $100 million worldwide.
Source: Valor International
A survey conducted by the Economic Research Institute Foundation (Fipe) and real estate firm Grupo Zap shows that the intention to purchase properties has never been greater since records began, in 2014. The proportion of people who declared their intention to buy properties in the following three months surprisingly rose to 48% in the third quarter of 2020 from 43% in the previous quarter. Despite the stagnation derived from the pandemic, many people who had to work remotely may have decided to invest in a home, where they have spent more time than before.
Source: Valor International
The pandemic led to an explosion of electronic commerce in Brazil, which reached R$231.9 billion last year, up from R$164.2 billion in 2019. The net growth (adjusted by inflation) was 41.2%, data from the Secretariat of Federal Revenue’s electronic invoices bulletin show. The pace of expansion accelerated with the pandemic. In March, the increase was 16% year over year. In May, with social-distancing measures, it was 31.8%. In June, there was an explosion: 73.9% growth. The increase remained above 40% in the following months. “E-commerce starts to impact brick-and-mortar stores,” the secretary of the Federal Revenue, José Tostes Neto, said.
Source: Valor International
Brazilian broker XP has raised R$198 billion in new money in 2020, as shown in the company’s operational preview on the fourth quarter, released on Tuesday. This volume is bigger than the R$166.3 billion raised by saving accounts, but the company wants to keep growing at an aggressive pace. One new alternative of expansion explored is credit. XP’s portfolio went from zero at the beginning of 2020 to R$3.8 billion and would have room to be multiplied a few times.
Source: Valor International
Brazilian state-owned research company Embrapa and AgTech firm Krilltech signed an intellectual property and joint ownership agreement of the active ingredient arboline, a nanotechnological biofertilizer. The nontoxic product promises to improve the performance of fertilizers and pesticides. It gives plants access to micro and macro nutrients and later is metabolized without leaving residues in the environment. A study by the Order of Economists of Brazil (OEB) showed that mass adoption of this technology can result in a 2% increase in the country’s GDP.
Source: Valor International
After a drop in sales and investments in 2020 because of the pandemic, Arcos Dorados, owner of McDonald’s in Latin Americas, plans to invest up to $130 million in 2021 to open 40 to 50 stores. Just over half of the money will go to Brazil, largest market in the region, where the company expects to open at least 30 new restaurants. Still, the numbers are lower than in 2019. Sales in stores with more than a year of operation in Brazil fell 21.8% in 2020. In Latin America, the drop was 22.3%.
Source: Valor International
Braskem has just agreed to purchase electricity from Casa dos Ventos, one of Brazil’s largest investors in wind power. The 20-year contract, which exceeds R$1 billion, will enable the construction of a new facility in Rio do Vento, a 504-megawatt wind complex that is being developed by Casa dos Ventos in Rio Grande do Norte. This is the largest of the four long-term renewable power purchase contracts signed by the petrochemical company since 2018. Braskem did not reveal the amount of power closed with Casa dos Ventos but says that, with the agreement, it exceeds the threshold of average 100 MW wind and solar power contracted. “We are positioned with a substantial volume of renewable power that will attend the company and the whole petrochemical chain. This reinforces the goal of reducing our emissions by 15% until 2030 and of becoming a carbon-neutral company until 2050,” Braskem’s Head of Energy Gustavo Checcucci says.
Source: Valor International
Engie Brasil Energia believes it can grow the portfolio of wind-power assets in Brazil by 500 megawatts a year and sees the Northeast as one opportunity. “The region’s wind quality is much superior, making a big difference in the competitiveness of farms,” EBE CEO Eduardo Sattamini says. The executive points that expectations of ending renewable source subsidies in Brazil are triggering a run on equipment and pushing prices higher. EBE only has 900 megawatts to develop in the country, not including the Campo Largo 2 project in Bahia, expected to begin commercial operation this month, and Rio Grande do Norte’s Santo Agostinho, a R$2.2 billion development that started construction last week and will fully focus on the unregulated market. EBE is also eyeing a hybrid complex with more than one renewable source and install solar equipment in its wind-power facilities as soon as there is regulatory clearance.
Source: Valor International