Mexico Nears Approval of Billionaire’s Bid for Banamex Stake

(Bloomberg) — Mexican financial officials are moving closer to approving billionaire Fernando Chico Pardo’s bid to buy a 25% stake in Citigroup Inc.’s Mexican retail banking unit Banamex, clearing the way for the business to go public next year.

The approval process for Chico Pardo’s stake and its strategic plan for Banamex is in the final stages, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity because the process is not yet final.

When Citigroup accepted Chico Pardo’s 42 billion pesos ($2.3 billion) offer in September, the bank said the deal was expected to close in the second half of 2026 and was subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals in Mexico.

At an industry conference this week, Citigroup Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason said progress was continuing.

“I talked about next year,” Mason said. “I can imagine it closing sooner than that.”

A Citigroup representative and a spokesman for Chico Pardo declined to comment further. Mexico’s finance ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Once government approval is received, Chico Pardo could sign a deal with Citigroup and transfer the share payment, the sources said. He will also assume the chairmanship of the board of directors of the Mexican unit.

Citigroup, which has liquidated or sold several retail arms around the world in a bid to simplify the bank, plans to sell smaller shares of Banamex to other investors ahead of the planned share offering.

Chico Pardo is the former CEO of Carlos Slim’s Grupo Financiero Inbursa and the founder of private equity firm Promecap. It is also a major shareholder of Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, or Asur, which operates in southeastern Mexico, home to tourist hotspots including Cancun. Chico Pardo, 73, suggested his sons would eventually take a role in overseeing investment at the bank.

Citigroup said it will seek to exit its retail banking operations in Mexico in 2022. The deal with Grupo Mexico SAB, the holding company of mining magnate German Larrea, fell apart at the last minute in 2023 after the intervention of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s predecessor, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

After Chico Pardo and Citigroup reached a deal earlier this year, the New York-based lender rejected a rival bid from Grupo Mexico that sought to outshine Chico Pardo’s offer.

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