Source Latin Lawyer.
Posadas in Montevideo has helped Brazil’s BTG Pactual acquire the Uruguayan operations of HSBC for US$175 million as the UK lender leaves another Latin American jurisdiction.
Local firm Guyer & Regules advised HSBC Uruguay on the deal.
Latin Lawyer understands that Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer also advised BTG Pactual, while Linklaters acted as international counsel to HSBC, but could not confirm this before publishing.
The deal was signed on 27 July and is subject to regulatory approval from Uruguay’s central bank.
The transaction will see BTG Pactual take over HSBC’s corporate and retail banking and corporate credit operations in Uruguay, including its wealth management and investment banking divisions.
The deal includes both equity and additional capital instruments, with adjustments expected before closing to reflect changes in the target’s equity position.
HSBC’s divestment comes as the UK-headquartered lender continues to streamline its operations to focus on Asian markets, particularly India and China. In June, HSBC sold a US$636 million stake in Argentina’s Grupo Financiero Galicia, having already exited its Argentine retail business in a separate deal last year.
Argentine firm Bruchou & Funes de Rioja advised HSBC in both those deals, while Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP also acted on the June transaction and Linklaters on the 2024 deal.
Counsel to BTG Pactual
In-house counsel – Felipe Gianattasio, Thomas Vasconcellos and Lais Abud
Posadas
Partners Fernando de Posadas, Andrés Aznárez, Lucía Carbajal, Diego Cuenca and Federico Peñasco, and associates Martina Reyes, Federico Samudio, Javier Bugna, Paula Cabarcos, Victoria Wolheim, María Paz Martínez, Victoria López, Mariana Fernández, Florencia Novaretto, María Eugenia Olaiz, Rocío González, Vanesa Cabrera, Magdalena Cuñarro and Agustina Ferraz in Montevideo
Counsel to HSBC
In-house counsel – Marta Bentancor and Andrew Sword
Guyer & Regules
Partners Juan Manuel Mercant, Marcos Payssé, Leonardo Slinger, Javier Otegui, Marcelo García Pintos and Santiago Madalena, director Beatriz Viera and associates Santiago Menéndez and José María Nicola in Montevideo