BTG Pactual Raises $1.96B In IPO

Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual raised 3.65 billion reais ($1.96 billion) in the country's largest initial public offering in more than 2 1/2 years amid strong demand, a local regulator said Tuesday.

The bank sold 117 million shares at 31.25 reais for between a suggested 28.75 reais and 33.75 reais, Brazilian securities regulator CVM said. BTG, which stands for Banking and Trading Group, is valued at about $14.4 billion, making it the 16th largest Brazilian company by market capitalization, Reuters reported.

BTG's offering was the largest since Banco Santander SA's $7.5 billion offering in October 2009 and could signal a revival for Brazil's IPO market, which has floundered in the wake of the global recession. Brazilian car rental company Locamerica also raised $165 million last week in an IPO, the first in the country since prep exam company Abril Educacao went public in July.

Strong demand for BTG Pactual came despite last week's report that BTG founder and CEO André Esteves was fined €350,000 for insider trading by Italian regulator Consob.

The bank will trade under the symbol BBTG11 on the Sao Paulo stock exchange starting Thursday.