The value of Grupo Financiero Banamex SA, Mexico's second-largest bank, may not reflect its lower profitability, posing a barrier to a potential offer by Brazilian rival Ita� Unibanco Holding SA, Deutsche Bank Securities said in a report.This week, Ita� Chief Executive Officer Roberto Egydio Setubal told shareholders that Banamex could provide a potential entrance into Mexico's banking industry. Setubal said so far there has been no contact with Banamex or controlling shareholder Citigroup Inc.Banamex, which has 16 percent of the banking assets and 15 percent of the loans in Mexico, could give Ita� a significant presence in the country, Deutsche Bank analyst Tito Labarta said in a client note.Yet Banamex's weak profitability could influence how much price-sensitive Ita� would pay, Labarta added.
Citigroup Inc. (Citigroup) is a global diversified financial services holding company whose businesses provide consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services and wealth management. Shares of C traded higher by 0.48% or $0.26/share to $54.36. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $45.18 and as high as $56.95. On average, 18252700 shares of C exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 15465814.
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