Santander set to float Mexico arm on NYSE
SANTANDER yesterday announced plans to float its Mexican banking arm Santander Mexico on the New York Stock Exchange later this month.
The initial public offering is expected to raise between €3bn (£2.37bn) and €3.4bn of capital for the company, boosting Santander’s core capital ratio by about half a percentage point under Basel II rules.
Shares are expected to start trading on 26 September on the NYSE and the Mexican Stock Exchange, where the bank will also be listed.
The float is the largest placing of shares ever in a Mexican company. The offer price of between 29 and 33.5 pesos per share values the bank at €13.7bn.
It is the third float of Santander’s banking operation in South America, following on from the IPO of Santander Brasil and Santander Chile.
Santander chairman Emilio Botin said: “This transaction is another step in our strategy of having quoted subsidiaries. Our three largest subsidiaries in Latin America will be among the top 100 banks in the world by stock market value.”
Approximately 80 per cent of shares will transact outside Mexico with the remaining 20 per cent in Mexico.