GE Money Expands Presence in Latin America

Furthering its growth strategy in Latin America, GE Money, the consumer lending unit of General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), today announced that it would acquire a minority position in Banco Colpatria – Red Multibanca Colpatria S.A., a consumer and commercial bank based in Bogotá, Colombia. GE Money will acquire a 39.3 percent stake in Red Multibanca Colpatria in two installments, with options to acquire up to an additional 25 percent stake from Mercantil Colpatria S.A. by 2012. The initial purchase, subject to regulatory approvals, is expected to close within the next few months.

“We are excited to be entering Colombia to partner with Banco Colpatria and its customers,” said Mark W. Begor, president and CEO of GE Money – Americas. “Colombia is an important growth market for GE as we continue to expand our business in Latin America. Eduardo Pacheco and the Banco Colpatria team have built an exciting bank in Colombia. We look forward to partnering with them to help accelerate their growth.”

Banco Colpatria, a member of the Mercantil Colpatria S.A. group, has over $2.4 billion in assets and is the second largest credit card issuer in Colombia. With 139 branches, the bank serves more than 1 million customers. The new partnership will enable the two companies to deliver enhanced consumer credit products to the growing Colombian financial services market.

“This partnership will enable Banco Colpatria to expand its product offerings and to further accelerate the bank’s strong growth in the Colombian market,” said Eduardo Pacheco, chairman of the board of Banco Colpatria. “This is part of the vision that we share with our new partner. GE Money is the perfect partner to help us broaden our business in Colombia.”

“The Colombian financial services market is strong and Banco Colpatria is a proven leader in this market,” said Edmundo Vallejo, president and CEO, GE Money – Latin America. “We’re very excited to begin partnering with the Banco Colpatria management team.”