Carlos Slim Lends More to Consumers as Grupo Financiero Inbursa Hits Record Patricia Laya - Businessweek.com
go to original August 12, 2014

Carlos Slim, the world’s second-richest man (famous-entrepreneurs.com)

Grupo Financiero Inbursa SAB is trading at a record as investors bet that billionaire Carlos Slim’s bank will benefit from a recovery in Latin America’s second-biggest economy with expanded consumer lending.

Inbursa has rallied 14 percent this year as the bank’s strategy to increase its share of the retail lending business pays off, with personal loans more than doubling last quarter and auto loans and credit cards expanding, helping boost profits. At the same time, loan repayment levels are improving after the company restructured earlier deals.

Mexico’s economic expansion will accelerate in the second half of the year to 3.5 percent in the fourth quarter, according to forecasts compiled by Bloomberg, providing fuel for Inbursa’s growth. A flurry of new laws to stimulate competition, including energy and telecommunications overhauls spearheaded by President Enrique Pena Nieto, is being enacted after months of legislative deliberation.

“You’re looking for that inflection point. The country is going to grow, and when you see GDP growth you want to be present with consumers as well, not just companies,” Frederic De Mariz, a UBS AG analyst, said in a telephone interview from Sao Paulo. “Inbursa wants to get retail loans, which have higher spreads; they have higher margins.”

The bank’s shares rose 1.9 percent yesterday to 42.23 pesos, an all-time closing high.

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