MEXICO CITY, May 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico, S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV: SANMEX; NYSE: BSMX) (“Santander Mexico”) announced today that its parent company, Banco Santander, S.A. (“Santander”), has reached an agreement with Warburg Pincus and General Atlantic to strengthen its asset management division. Under this agreement, which is still subject to certain regulatory approvals, Warburg Pincus and General Atlantic will jointly acquire a 50% equity stake in an asset management holding company that will integrate eleven asset management division companies, primarily in Europe and Latin America. The remaining 50% will be indirectly held by our parent company.

As previously disclosed in our annual report, this transaction would result in the divestiture of Gestion Santander, S.A. de C.V., Sociedad Operadora de Sociedades de Inversion (“Gestion Santander“) and therefore Gestion Santander will no longer be part of Santander Mexico. However, we expect to enter into exclusive, long-term distribution agreements so that Banco Santander (Mexico) S.A., Santander Mexico as well as Casa de Bolsa Santander, S.A. de C.V, Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico, can continue to offer mutual funds managed by Gestion Santander following the divestiture.

As was reaffirmed in the Board meeting that took place on February 14^th, 2013, such transaction is authorized to occur only at or above a price determined by a third party to be fair and upon satisfaction of certain other standard market conditions, as well as any required government and third party approvals.

As of March 31, 2013, Gestion Santander managed approximately 180 billion pesos. This transaction would value Gestion Santander at approximately 195 million euros (~3,250 million pesos) and we estimate a net capital gain for Santander Mexico of 1,900 million pesos.

About Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico
Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico, S.A.B. de C.V. (Santander Mexico), one of Mexico‘s leading financial services holding companies, provides a wide range of financial and related services, including retail and commercial banking, securities brokerage, financial advisory and other related investment activities. Santander Mexico offers a multichannel financial services platform focused on mid- to high-income individuals and small- to medium-sized enterprises, while also providing integrated financial services to larger multinational companies in Mexico. As of March 31, 2013, Santander Mexico had total assets of Ps.856.8 billion under Mexican GAAP and more than 10.0 million customers. Headquartered in Mexico City, the Company operates 967 branches and 226 offices nationwide and has a total of 13,498 employees.

SOURCE Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico, S.A.B. de C.V.