news - FMO invests in Agribusiness transformation in Argentina

Together with Victoria Capital Partners, FMO invests in Grupo Los Grobo

Grupo Los Grobo (Los Grobo) announced today the completion of the negotiations for the incorporation as a new shareholder of an international investment group led by Victoria Capital Partners (VCP), one of the most respected private equity firms in Latin America. This capital increase of USD100,000,000 will be used to strengthen the capital structure of the company and support its current growth plan aiming at doubling its size in the next 4 years. Simultaneously, VCP acquires a block of additional shares from certain shareholders of the Company. This is a very important transaction due to the high quality of the investment group led by VCP, which includes The University of Texas Investment Management Company (UTIMCO), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and FMO.

In connection with this announcement Gustavo Grobocopatel, who will remain as President of the company, said: “Under the continuous changes and global challenges, this transaction is a big step forward since it will facilitate the flow of know-how and capital to our network, which includes clients, suppliers, talent and the society as a whole. Likewise, it will consolidate our leadership and facilitate moving faster and deeper towards our vision of transforming into a global company in the agribusiness space”.

Carlos García, Chairman and Co-Managing Partner of VCP said: “We are very excited about our investment in Los Grobo and to be partnering with the Grobocopatel Family. Together with them and the highly qualified management team we will be able to capture the significant opportunities presented by the agribusiness ecosystem in Argentina, particularly under the new macroeconomic environment that started at the beginning of the year. Argentina offers sustainable competitive advantages for the development of agribusinesses and we believe that Los Grobo is a great platform to undertake an aggressive investment plan in the sector. Our strategy is supported by a group of worldclass co-investors, which confirms the quality and attractiveness of the investment opportunities that Argentina offers in this industry.

Itau BBA acted as financial advisor of Los Grobo in this transaction.

Los Grobo is a Company that has been the leader of the agribusiness transformation in Argentina and the region for the last 25 years. Its platform provides different services to the agricultural producers, with a model integrated into the industry and the sciences, as well as innovative due to its capacity of transforming and offering solutions to this changing world. In that sense, Los Grobo is a well-recognized global leader about which 6 case studies have been written analyzing its experiences.

Victoria Capital Partners is a regionally dedicated private equity fund exclusively focused on investing in South America. It manages capital for large institutional investors and has assets under management for approximately US$2Billions. With offices in Buenos Aires, Bogotá, Sao Paulo and New York, the firm is managed by a group of Latin American professionals with extensive experience investing private equity in the region.