Brazil's Itaú Close to Deal to Buy 49% of Broker XP -- Source

CURITIBA, Brazil -- Itaú Unibanco Holding SA, Brazil's second-largest bank by assets, is in advanced talks to acquire a 49% stake in local investment broker XP Investimentos, according to a person close to the deal.

If the purchase goes ahead, Itaú will pay about six billion reais ($1.9 billion) for the stake, currently owned by U.S.-based private-equity firm General Atlantic, the person said. XP will likely cancel its planned initial public share offering if the deal is completed, the person said.

On Wednesday, Itaú bank had said in a regulatory filing that it was in talks to acquire a minority stake in the firm, but it didn't provide more information.

Negotiations advanced Wednesday night, but some details were still pending, the person said, An announcement could come as early as this week, that person added.

XP is controlled by its founder, Guilherme Benchimol, and a group of partners who together hold a 51% stake in the company.

It started in 2001 as a brokerage and expanded into portfolio management. It also has an unit that advises corporate clients on debt and equity operations.

Write to Luciana Magalhaes at Luciana.Magalhaes@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 11, 2017 09:14 ET (13:14 GMT)