ING's (ING 1.02%) Latin American operations will soon be one division lighter. The company announced it reached an agreement to sell its mortgage business in Mexico to Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico (BSMX +0.00%), the local presence of Spanish financial group Banco Santander (SAN 0.82%). The price was 643 million pesos ($51 million), according to Mexico City newspaper La Cronica de Hoy.
In the press release announcing the ING Hipotecaria deal, its parent company said the sale was part of a "process to divest its insurance and investment management businesses."
The unit is a mortgage business with 20 branches throughout the country. It services roughly 28,000 clients.
ING said that the deal was not expected to have a material impact on its results. It is subject to regulatory approval by the relevant authorities, and is expected to close in the second half of this year.
