Planvital to buy 65% stake in Magister

Chilean pension fund manager AFP Planvital is set to pay nearly US$10mn to acquire the 64.6% stake in its local competitor AFP Magister currently held by bankrupt financial group Inverlink, according to a statement sent to the country's SVS securities regulator. Planvital now has until December 30 to complete the proposed transaction which has already received the full approval of Inverlink creditors based on an official offer from Planvital's parent company, Italian banking group Banco Della Svizzera Italiana (BSI). Under the terms of the purchase agreement, Planvital will pay US$85,000 in cash with further payments of US$5.6mn to acquire Inverlink's current shareholding in Magister and US$3.5mn in five quotas to secure the bankrupt group's trading account held with its former subsidiary. Inverlink was intervened earlier this year following charges linking the company to large-scale theft from state business development agency Corfo and espionage against the central bank. Magister had 97,372 affiliates at end-July this year, down from 100,253 at the end of the previous month and a 14.4% drop compared to 113,817 in February of last year, before the Inverlink scandal first broke.