News

America Movil to Issue More Peso Bonds as Market Grows, CFO Says

(Bloomberg) -- America Movil SAB plans to issue more peso-denominated debt, prioritizing the Mexican market as the telecommunications company looks to align its financing structure with its revenues, its finance chief said.

Mexico City-based America Movil, which provides broadband, wireless and other services across Latin America, generates a sizeable portion of revenues back home. Still, the company until recently had to tap US or European debt markets for its funding needs, as the domestic pool of capital wasn’t deep enough, Carlos Garcia Moreno said in an interview.

“Before, as a company, if you had important funding requirements, the truth is that the Mexican market did not provide them,” Garcia Moreno, a finance veteran with over 20 years of experience in the CFO-role, said. Now, Mexico “provided it,” he said.

America Movil, controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim and one of the largest companies in the region, has raised about $3 billion since it launched its peso bond program in 2023, with its most recent transaction in March bringing in about $1 billion. The company has been the leading issuer of such bonds since 2023, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Other peso borrowers include multilateral lenders and international banks, the data show.

The company has issued 5-year, 7-year and 10-year peso bonds and plans to add to its portfolio of local debt instruments, Garcia Moreno said. The yield on its long bond over the comparable government bond has declined about 22 basis points since it was issued, indicating strong investors demand for the company’s debt.

America Movil’s peso bonds now represent about 30% of the company’s outstanding bonds, according to its latest quarterly report. Issuing in local currency can be cheaper for the company, Garcia Moreno said. America Movil last raised dollar-denominated debt in July 2022.

Its peso notes are Euroclearable, meaning they meet the legal and regulatory requirements of other established markets. That’s allowing international investors to hold the debt, according to Daniela Lecuona, the company’s head of investor relations.

Going forward, America Movil plans to issue peso-denominated debt two to three times a year, CFO Garcia Moreno said. “This doesn’t mean we won’t do anything in other currencies, but we are going to prioritize peso issuances,” he said. The company is targeting a mix of foreign and local investors, with the latter accounting for about 60% of debt sold in recent months, he said.

Mexico’s central bank last month delivered a third straight interest rate cut as inflation and economic growth show signs of slowing. The rate now stands at 10.25%, with policymakers leaving the door open for further rate reductions.

America Movil faces various maturities in the coming years, including for peso- and euro-denominated bonds that are set to come due in 2025, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

It makes sense for the company to rely on peso-denominated bonds given that the domestic market accounts for around 40% of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, according to Sharon Chen, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.

“We’re very well diversified geographically and in lines of business. Having our operations diversified means that we’re also diversified in funding,” Garcia Moreno said.

--With assistance from Michael O'Boyle.