Conditioned by the President of Mexico, the sale of Banamex by Citi is registering the consecutive rejection of potential buyers.

Of eight institutions that initially showed interest, only three remain.

The list of interested parties is getting smaller and the time for Citi to make a decision is getting shorter.

Last Friday Banorte, owned by Carlos Hank González, surprised by announcing its decision not to continue in the purchase-sale operation. He did not elaborate on his reasons.

Before Banorte, Santander was left out (whose economic offer is said to have been rejected, due to low); Grupo Salinas, by Ricardo Salinas Pliego; HSBC, headed by Jorge Arce and Banco BX+, chaired by Antonio Del Valle Perochena.

Who are the three bidders who continue to bid?

They are: Inbursa, owned by tycoon Carlos Slim; Grupo Mifel, headed by the current president of the Association of Banks of Mexico, Daniel Becker, and Grupo México, led by German Larrea.

These three have been advancing in the integration of two groups of investors and teams of advisers.

The dismissal of Banorte was surprising because, according to different analysts, it was the institution that was most likely to buy Banamex; one of the three largest banks operating in Mexico. With the purchase of Banamex, Banorte would have become the largest banking institution in the country. It would have even been above BBVA-Mexico, which is chaired by Jaime Serra Puche and directed by Eduardo Osuna.

There were no signs that Banorte was going to abandon the bid. However, in the financial market he began to worry about the fourth presidential condition that he mentioned and added to the 3 that he had previously cited.

It must be remembered that in a first serve, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador mentioned 3 conditions for the sale of Banamex:

1.- That the buyers are of Mexican capital.

2.- That the shareholders who acquire it are up to date in the payment of their taxes.

3.- That the cultural heritage of Banamex remain in Mexico.

Some time later, he added a fourth condition.

4.- Workers should not be fired en masse.

This last and additional presidential condition, without a doubt, complicated the position of Banorte, an institution that has considerable experience in the purchase and integration of various banks.

Even before this latest presidential term, Banorte seemed to have all the advantages, since it had successfully “swallowed up” at least four other banking institutions.

In addition to his capital strength and the gratitude that he has publicly acknowledged that the President of the Republic has for that institution. Most likely, the presidential condition of not laying off workers en masse is one of the causes of Banorte’s self-dismissal.

The integration of Banamex into Banorte, without the necessary, if not obligatory, personnel cuts to eliminate redundancies between the two institutions, would have represented an operational and cost problem.

So much so that in an immediate reaction the markets rewarded Banorte’s actions considering that the institution decided not to make risky decisions.

On the other hand, in recent days, the president of the National Banking and Securities Commission, Jesús de la Fuente Rodríguez, “advanced the note” and spread before the banking institution, that this regulatory body had already given him authorization to operate. a new fully digital bank.

Later, Banorte confirmed it and made public that it will invest 1,675 million pesos in the new bank that it calls Bineo, focused on a 100% digital strategy.

However, the institution did not give details of its decision to abandon the bid.

The three remaining groups have unquestionable capital strength. For Inbursa, the purchase of Banamex would represent a notable growth. We will have to see if it stays. Everything will depend on the price. Grupo México, a mining group, without a bank, would give it a presence. And Mifel, I would place him among the big leagues, it will be necessary to see if the group of investors that supports him is consolidated.

Larrea and Slim have mostly national capital.

Citi intends to place Banamex on the market as an alternative. We will see.

[email protected]