(Capital - O Globo) Seneca Evercore leads among independent advisory firms with a volume of $3.5 billion and 15% market share By Mariana Barbosa and Rennan Setti The credit crisis, which deepened with the Americanas scandal earlier this year, is reshaping the relationship between companies and banks—and its impact goes beyond a decline in loan offerings: it is also affecting the merger and acquisition (M&A) advisory sector.
“Banks have stopped being advisors and become creditors,” says Daniel Wainstein, partner at Seneca Evercore, an M&A boutique founded in 2020 that leads in transaction volume and value among independent advisors, according to Dealogic. “And since these banks positioned themselves on the other side of the table during such a delicate moment for many Brazilian companies, they ended up losing the trust and support of many business owners,” he adds.
Wainstein, Rodrigo Mello, and their partners’ firm has captured 15% of Brazil’s M&A market. With a team of 30 people, they participated in transactions totaling $3.5 billion, ranking ahead of Itaú BBA, JP Morgan, Bank of America, and others. Itaú BBA, with a team of 100, handled $2.4 billion.
Boutiques like Seneca Evercore and BR Partners—the second-largest among independent advisors, having advised $2.5 billion this year—have been called upon to find solutions for companies’ high indebtedness. Many opted for new financing, restructuring their capital structure through convertible debt issuance.
Since 2018, the market share of independent advisors has grown from 4% to nearly 24.5%, while commercial banks have dropped from 51% to nearly the same level as independents. International banks traditionally claim the other half of this market.
“This trend won’t reverse. Banks often tie credit to future M&A deals. When they lose the credit oligopoly, they lose their M&A power,” says Wainstein. Five years ago, banks controlled 71% of the corporate credit market. Today, they hold 56%.
The decline of M&A activities in major banks has driven the creation of new independent advisory firms, mirroring a similar trend in Private Banking, where many managers are leaving to establish independent wealth management advisory firms.
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