BTG Pactual’s acquisition of Colombian brokerage Bolsa y Renta takes the Brazilian investment bank one step closer to fulfilling its Latin American strategy. According to Persio Arida, partner at BTG Pactual and chairman of the asset management division of the bank, the bank’s next target will be in Mexico City: "Our next country is going to be Mexico. We are still discussing between ourselves how best to approach the Mexican market – there are a number of alternatives. We might decide shortly... but clearly Mexico is the next target, not necessarily in terms of acquisition but we definitely want to have a presence in Mexico."
Arida’s openness about the possibility of an acquisition contradicts the stated view of Roberto Sallouti, BTG’s chief operating officer, whom Bloomberg reported as saying about the Bolsa y Renta agreement: "This is the last acquisition we will do in Latin America, the rest will be organic growth. We are not planning to buy any other company in Mexico or Latin America."
However, it does appear clear that after Mexico, the bank’s network will be complete, at least in the medium term. Arida says: "All the other countries [in Latin America] are not being contemplated for now."
