Mapfre and Banco do Brasil agree merger

17 . 05 . 2010

Fonte: Latin Lawyer

Data: 17th May 2010

by David Thorley

Azevedo Sette Advogados has acted for Spanish insurance company Mapfre as it agreed to merge its Brazilian operations with the local insurance wing of Banco do Brasil.

State-owned Banco do Brasil is Latin America’s largest bank by assets

Velloza, Girotto e Lindenbojm Advogados Associados SC represented Banco do Brasil in the deal, which was announced on 5 May.

The deal will see Mapfre and state-run Banco do Brasil creating two holding companies: one focussing on personal insurance, real estate and agriculture; and the other working on vehicle insurance and other consumer insurance products.

Mapfre will hold a 51 per cent voting share in the first company and a 51 per cent stake in the other one.

Banco do Brasil, Latin America’s largest bank by assets, retained BTG Pactual as its financial advisor on the deal, which, in turn, was responsible for hiring Velloza Girotto as legal advisor to the bank.

Also this month, that firm represented BTG as financial advisor to the restructuring of Banco do Brasil subsidiary BB Seguros’ Brazilian pension and long-term asset accumulation joint venture, Brasilprev Seguros e Previdência.

Velloza Girotto’s Mareska Tiveron explains that the firm first worked for Banco do Brasil in 2009, acting as the company’s legal counsel when it acquired a 49.9 per cent stake in the voting shares of Banco Votorantim.

Counsel to Mapfre

In-house counsel – Antonio Fernando Rodrigues in Brazil and Angel Luis Dávila Bermejo in Spain

Azevedo Sette Advogados

Partners Ordélio Azevedo Sette, Juliano Battella Gotlib, Ricardo Azevedo Sette and Leandra Guimarães, and associates Joyl Gondim Filho, Dinir Salvador Rios da Rocha, João Carlos Mascarenhas Horta, Ligia Aquino and Conrado Stievani

Counsel to Banco do Brasil

In-house counsel – Antonio Rugero Guibo

Velloza, Girotto e Lindenbojm Advogados Associados SC

Partners Cesar Amendolara and Márcio Garcia, and associates Mareska Tiveron Salge, Leandro Vilarinho Borges