As RBC’s investment banking activity gains ever greater traction in Spain, the firm is looking to build on its established regional presence to boost local origination and advisory activity, increase the volume of cross-border transactions, and grow fee pools.
Nicolas Mazzoli, newly appointed Country Manager, gives his outlook on the Spanish market and how RBC Capital is positioned for further market share growth.
“We are entering a new era of opportunity regarding our coverage,” says Mazzoli. “Our ambition is to accelerate the growth of our platform, deliver more value to clients across a greater number of sectors, and leverage our global capabilities across the region.”
Mazzoli, based in Spain for the last XX years to build out RBC’s origination and advisory expertise in expanded infrastructure sectors and renewables, succeeds Amadeo Hernandez, now Vice Chairman, Investment Banking Spain, who will focus on senior coverage across the bank’s client base.
“We have reached a critical mass in terms of our current footprint and experience here,” affirms Mazzoli. “Over the last eight years, we have established a strong presence in key industry sectors – Infrastructure, Power & Utilities – where we have a top three franchise in Europe. Now we are identifying broader opportunities, providing strategic advice to corporates, sponsors and institutional investors in sectors such as Consumer & Retail, Healthcare, CMT, and Industrial Services across Spain and Portugal.”
Navigating volatility
The new era of growth signifies a strengthened commitment to the Spain/Iberia market and to the Spanish economy in particular, which continues to prove resilient to global volatility. Financial institutions vary enormously in terms of how they respond to geopolitical and economic tensions around the world, but RBC’s footprint across major global financial centres positions the bank well for today’s volatile market, economic and political environment.
“Our clients in Spain continue to need access to global markets,” says Mazzoli. “We have to provide this. As the 9th largest bank globally by market capitalization, we pay extremely close attention to shifts in the external environment that will impact our clients. Our job is to support our clients through a myriad of challenging market cycles, navigating unpredictable courses for inflation and interest rates, unsettled patterns of global trade, macro-economic instability, and the resurgence of real conflict between nations.”
With market cap of $137bn, RBC significantly outweighs the majority of its European peers – a scale which has allowed RBC to leverage global capabilities and expertise for regional clients in Spain through periods of market disruption.
“Encouragingly, we are now seeing strong signals across the local markets,” says Mazzoli. “M&A activity is gaining momentum as macro-economic headwinds subside. We are seeing stronger deal flow and are well-prepared for improving conditions.”
A mission-led approach
For Mazzoli, improving capital raising solutions, fostering a robust deal flow and invigorating local origination and advisory services all underpins another important ambition – the energy transition.
“RBC is a mission-led organisation,” continues Mazzoli. “We recognise we have a role to play in addressing climate change and have a strategy to do our part here in Spain. We have a strong transactions record across renewables, the energy transition, and clean technologies, supporting both buy and sell sides on renewable power mandates (Bruc, OX2, Foresight, Finerge), leveraging our dedicated Energy Transition team in Europe.”
“Our clients are at the heart of all this activity,” concludes Mazzoli. “Our commitment to them continues to shape our vision. We are entering a new era that positions us well to build on our legacy of deep commitment to clients across the region.”