Macquarie Capital Securities, an affiliate of the Macquarie Group, and Foundation Securities, a Pakistan securities company, have signed a strategic cooperation agreement covering investment banking and securities operations.
The initial agreement enables Macquarie’s clients to receive co-branded equity research focused on Pakistan and to trade equities in the country, one of Asia’s key frontier markets. It also gives Foundation Securities’ clients access to Macquarie’s presence in global financial markets. The agreement includes exclusive partnering arrangements between Foundation Securities and Macquarie in relation to in-bound and out-bound equity capital markets transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and other corporate finance advisory work.
“This is a landmark agreement in one of Asia’s most untapped markets and helps Macquarie bring further focus to the region’s frontier markets,” said Mark Duncan, head of Macquarie Securities Group, Asia.
Macquarie continues to grow its Asia franchise and expand its footprint in emerging markets. In 2010 it signed wide-ranging cooperation agreements with VinaSecurities, a leading Vietnamese securities company, and BRAC-EPL, an investment bank in Bangladesh. Macquarie also recently advised Hong Kong-based United Energy Group on its $775 million acquisition of BP’s upstream assets in Pakistan. The assets consist of nine producing and exploration blocks in Sindh province and four offshore exploration blocks in the Arabian Sea. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2011.
“The combination of Foundation Securities’ unrivalled local market knowledge and Macquarie’s deep expertise in international markets will benefit Macquarie’s global client base and corporates in Pakistan,” said Kalpana Desai, Asia head of Macquarie’s investment banking business, Macquarie Capital Advisers. Foundation Securities, established in January 2005 as a full-service equities broking and investment banking firm, is a member of the Karachi Stock Exchange and the National Commodity Exchange.
“I am delighted that Macquarie and Foundation Securities have decided to partner in jointly pitching the Pakistan story to their investors,” said Atif Mohammed Khan, managing director and CEO of Foundation Securities. “With Macquarie’s wide global presence and a special focus on the frontier markets, I firmly believe that our co-branded research will have a forceful impact. Macquarie’s presence will also open up a lot of avenues to explore in equity capital markets and corporate finance advisory work.”
