By Brazil Stock Guide – Citigroup said on Monday (23) it has agreed to sell a further 24% stake in Grupo Financiero Banamex to a group of institutional investors and family offices, including BTG Pactual, accelerating its withdrawal from Mexico. The transaction involves roughly 499 million common shares at a fixed price of about MXN 43 billion — approximately $2.5 billion.
The buyer consortium includes General Atlantic, Afore Sura, BTG Pactual, Chubb, funds managed by Blackstone, Liberty Strategic Capital and the Qatar Investment Authority. The move, first reported by Bloomberg, highlights continued global appetite for large Latin American banking assets despite a more uncertain macroeconomic environment.
The transaction follows the December 2025 closing of a 25% stake sale to Mexican businessman Fernando Chico Pardo, Banamex’s chairman and largest private individual shareholder. Citi said Chico Pardo actively participated in selecting the new minority investors and will remain involved in integrating the expanded shareholder base.
With the completion of all committed transactions, Citi will have divested 49% of Banamex. Amid the faster-than-expected execution, the bank said it does not anticipate additional stake sales in 2026, signaling a pause after transferring nearly half of the business to new investors.
Strategic Reset
Citi’s gradual exit from Mexico is part of a broader strategy to simplify its global footprint and reallocate capital toward core markets, particularly in the United States. The reshaped ownership structure leaves Banamex backed by a diversified mix of global financial investors, regional institutional capital and a prominent local anchor shareholder.
For BTG Pactual, the investment deepens its cross-border footprint in Latin America’s financial sector, expanding beyond its Brazilian base at a time of consolidation and strategic repositioning across the region.
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