J.P. Morgan today announced it has been retained by Centrais Elétricas Brasileiras S.A. (Eletrobrás) to be the depositary bank for the company's American Depositary Receipt (ADR) program listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). J.P. Morgan had served as the depositary bank for the Eletrobrás OTC ADR program, and has now been mandated as the depositary for the company's Level 2 NYSE listing. Eletrobrás is the largest electric utilities company in Latin America, and had been the largest Brazilian OTC ADR program prior to its current upgrade to a full NYSE listing. The NYSE-listed ADRs will trade under symbols EBR and EBR.B.
William Kirst, Depositary Receipts Executive for Latin America at J.P. Morgan, said: “We have had a long-standing relationship with Eletrobrás and are pleased to continue our relationship with them as we launch their ADR program on the NYSE. By upgrading their program to a full NYSE listing, Eletrobrás will now have even more visibility to a larger spectrum of potential investors, while at the same time showcasing the highest standard of transparency that a NYSE listing demonstrates.â€
J.P. Morgan has been the depositary bank for all of the Latin American listings on the NYSE in 2008: Eletrobrás (Brazil), Ecopetrol S.A. (Colombia), and Telmex Internacional (Mexico).
J.P. Morgan launched the first DR in Latin America in 1960 (Teléfonos de México) and serves as depositary for a number of prominent DR programs in Latin America, including Banco Santander - Chile, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. and Companhia Vale do Rio Doce. In 2007, the firm launched a global depositary shares (GDS) program for Grupo ClarÃn S.A., the first Argentine company to have a DR listing on the London Stock Exchange. That year it also launched a global depositary receipt (GDR) program for Almacenes Exito S.A., the first primary offering of equity securities by a Colombian company outside of the home market in over 10 years.
For market information on DRs and international equities go to J.P. Morgan's award-winning web site www.adr.com. For more information on J.P. Morgan's DR services, please visit http://www.jpmorgan.com/visit/adr.
About Centrais Elétricas Brasileiras S.A. (Eletrobrás)
Centrais Elétricas Brasileiras S.A. (Eletrobrás)(NYSE: EBR, EBR.B) is a Brazil-based company that is principally engaged in the electric utilities industry. The Company specializes in the developing, financing, construction and operation of electric power plants, as well as generation, transmission and distribution of nuclear, hydroelectric and fossil fuel electric power. The Company has a number of subsidiaries engaged in the generating and distributing of electric power. It operates 57,261 kilometers of transmission lines, 29 hydroelectric plants, 15 thermoelectric and two nuclear plants. For more information about Eletrobrás, please visit the Company's Web site at: www.eletrobras.gov.br.
About JPMorgan Chase & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.3 trillion and operations in more than 60 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management, and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world's most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its J.P. Morgan, Chase, and Washington Mutual brands. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.
