Inversiones Atlántida S.A., the holding company of Grupo Financiero Atlántida, one of Latin America's leading financial services groups, today announced the launch of BancAtlantic Capital LLC ("BancAtlantic" or the "Firm"), a New York-based investment and merchant banking firm. The launch marks Grupo Financiero Atlántida's entry into the US market and expands its global capital markets and investment banking capabilities. The Firm was co-founded by veteran Wall Street and global capital markets banker John Tonelli, who serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
BancAtlantic combines the financial strength, regional franchise, and institutional capabilities of one of Latin America's leading diversified financial services groups with decades of global capital markets expertise. Grupo Financiero Atlántida's operations include commercial and investment banking, pension fund and institutional asset management, and insurance, serving more than 4.2 million clients across ten countries through a workforce of over 6,400 employees.
BancAtlantic's differentiated strategy is to focus on clients across high-growth emerging markets that have historically received limited attention from global investment banks. The Firm will leverage Grupo Financiero Atlántida's balance sheet, institutional investment platform, regional relationships, and existing investment banking business to provide clients with differentiated access to global capital, strategic advisory services and innovative financing solutions. The Firm's core businesses will include investment banking and capital markets, institutional sales and trading, principal investing, and asset management.
John Tonelli has spent more than three decades advising clients in emerging economies. Throughout his career, he has developed innovative financing solutions for complex transactions and has brought numerous first-time issuers into the international capital markets. Prior to launching BancAtlantic, Mr. Tonelli spent over a decade at Oppenheimer & Co. as Global Head of Debt Capital Markets and Syndication, where he closed nearly $10 billion in financings. Before that, he was a Senior Managing Director & Head of International Structured Finance at Bear Stearns and J.P. Morgan, and was previously a corporate attorney and Head of the Latin American Group at the Wall Street law firm Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft.
