Grupo Cibest, the Bancolombia holding, plans to acquire 100% of Colombian fintech PTM to expand its banking-agent network

Grupo Cibest plans to buy 100% of PTM through its subsidiary Estrategias Cibest, according to the filing with Colombia's Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio. Terms were not disclosed.

PTM is an aggregator of banking correspondents. It gives shops, large merchants and companies a digital ecosystem to offer financial and non-financial services to their customers, and manages agent networks linking about 20,000 merchants across Colombia. It runs traditional correspondent services with Bancolombia and digital ones with Nequi, Grupo Aval, Davivienda, DaviPlata, BBVA and Banco Agrario.

Grupo Cibest is the holding created from Bancolombia's restructuring, grouping Bancolombia, Nequi, Wompi, Wenia, Bancoagrícola and BAM. In August it closed the purchase of 100% of payroll-loan fintech Avista Colombia.

The read: a bank buying the rails that connect its own and its rivals' correspondents.

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