Caucasus Financial Services, LLC (CFS Investment Bank), was founded in 2005.
Since its inception, CFS Investment Bank has been an unprecedented infrastructural mechanism contributing to the development of local capital market through offering a wide range of capital market products and services. CFS operates four business lines (Investment Bank with Investment Banking and Capital Market Products and Trading sub-business lines; Investment Fund; Brokerage & Asset Management and Financial Consulting) with the idea to uncover latent demand for the capital market products and services by actually offering them to the local market participants.
Stability and rapid economic expansion in Georgia recent years resulted in pressing need to develop local capital market – more flexible and cost efficient intermediary between capital suppliers and capital users. CFS Investment Bank brings international expertise and pioneers new generation of capital market products and services thus stimulating Georgian capital market and making it more attractive to foreign investors as well.
Under Investment Bank business line, CFS offers Investment Banking services of M&A, Debt & Equity Underwriting and Project Finance. M&A services cover all phases of the transaction, including but not limited to search and target identification, due diligence, valuation, deal negotiation and execution. Through its Debt & Equity Underwriting services CFS assists companies in raising funds for growth and development. To name a few, CFS worked as a Lead Manager on Eurobond issuances for leading Georgian banks. An increasing demand for issuing local debt securities is also manifest. CFS as a Lead Manager and Placement Agent has successfully completed issuance of two local puttable corporate bonds for Elit Electronics. These were first and so far only corporate bonds issued in Georgia by nonfinancial organization.
CFS Capital Market Products and Trading business sub-line provides access to a wide range of fixed income, equity, currency and commodity products on the global markets as well as services in the areas of structured finance and securitization. CFS was the first to offer innovative financial engineering product of collective financing of a pool of local companies based on securitization of a portfolio of newly issued debts of these companies. CFS Investment Bank as a Structurer, Lead Manager and Placement Agent has completed successful transaction of issuance and placement of first in the region public collateralized debt obligations for a local originator company. These securities (asset backed bonds) after full redemption at their maturity have been reissued and placed as private placement securities at a request of bondholders.
CFS Investment Fund business line is engaged in development of collective investment vehicles, which enable small and medium size investors to invest. Under this business line CFS has developed real estate investment fund (REIF), where small investors had opportunity to buy as few as one square meter of a real estate and take an equity position in a rapidly growing local real estate market.
CFS Brokerage & Asset Management provides services to individuals and institutions in Georgia. As a shareholder member of Georgian Stock Exchange and licensed brokerage company authorized to trade at GSE, CFS provides full and discount brokerage services to the clients on the local market as well. Global brokerage services are also offered. Through these services individuals and institutions can trade on their own accounts on global securities and mercantile exchanges and forex markets, throughout the World, including but not limited to New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, London Stock Exchange, Tokyo Stock Exchange and many more (access to total of about 50 exchanges).
Among the notable projects under CFS Financial Consulting, we emphasize development of a fully Basel II compliant financial risk management and control infrastructure for leading local bank.
CFS Investment Bank is also a founding (comandit) partner of CFS Legal Guledani & Partners, a law firm covering wide range of corporate and business law areas and having particular background and experience in advising on financial and securities law. Due to the synergy, the law firm offers unique expertise available for the corporate finance, debt & equity or securities transactions.
In conclusion, the local capital market is entering its early but rapid development phase and CFS is well positioned to take challenge and further strengthen its leadership in the marketplace.
