- Latin American private banking is shifting from slow organic growth toward scale via M&A, cross-border expansion, and consolidated family-office platforms.
- BTG Pactual grew wealth AUM to $175 billion by March 2025 (+15.9% YoY) with $34.1 billion in net new money and ~$22 billion built in its multifamily office unit through acquisitions.
- Itafa Private Bank is making sustainability central, deploying >R$120 billion toward a R$1 trillion 2030 goal and structuring $2.7 billion of ESG bonds in 2024.
- Bradesco Global Private Bank is differentiating through digital and AI, moving >90% of transactions online while boosting client satisfaction and strengthening fraud/security controls.
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Private banking in Latin America is at a strategic inflection point: organic asset growth is hobbling many players, and firms like BTG Pactual are doubling down on M&A, cross-border expansion, and family office consolidation to drive scale and stay competitive. Market volatility and rising client demands are pushing wealth managers toward diversifying offerings—sustainable investing, AI-driven tools, family-office services—and expanding client segments, particularly ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) and high-net-worth (HNW) individuals.
BTG’s $175 billion AUM for its Wealth Management division (as of March 2025), up 15.9% year-over-year, is a signal of both demand and execution strength. Supplemented by $34.1 billion in net new money, this growth is anchored in Brazil (≈ US$163 billion AUM) but increasingly shaped by international acquisitions. These include two in Brazil (Julius Baer Brasil family office business at $11 billion, JGP Wealth Management at $3.4 billion), and two in the US (Greytown Advisors $1 billion; M.Y. Safra $391 million). The boosting of its multifamily office platform to ~$22 billion underscores BTG’s strategic emphasis on consolidating UHNW/HNW families under centralized, high-touch platforms.
Itaú Private Bank demonstrates that sustainability is no longer niche, but foundational. With a R$1 trillion target by 2030 and already >R$120 billion deployed by late 2024, its commitment spans product innovation (green/social/sustainability-linked bonds, ESG funds and ETFs), regional biodiversity/social bond deals, and internal ESG methodology. This suggests that sustainability in Latin America’s wealth sector is shifting from optional branding to a growth imperative.
Digital transformation is advancing rapidly. Bradesco’s private banking arm is pushing >90% of its transactions through digital channels, increasing client satisfaction (10-point NPS boost), and embedding advanced AI tools both for clients (virtual assistant, generative platforms) and internal controls (fraud/security). For Latin American banks with high fixed costs and regulatory pressure, digital scale and AI offerings may provide differentiation and operating leverage.
Strategic implications for institutions and investors include: banks must invest in cross-border presence or M&A to reach UHNW segments; sustainability credentials will increasingly be prerequisites for both large clients and regulatory compliance; AI and digital infrastructure now shape client satisfaction and trust; and diversification—across geographies, client segments, and investment products—is essential to offset low organic growth in cores. Open questions remain around valuations in private bank M&A, regulatory risk (cross-border and ESG disclosures), and whether smaller or regional institutions can keep pace with global competitiveness.
Supporting Notes
- BTG Pactual’s Wealth Management AUM stood at $175 billion in March 2025, up 15.9% YoY and 56% over two years. Net new money was $34.1 billion; revenue was $691 million, up 5%.
- In Brazil, AUM reached $163 billion with $33.3 billion in net new money during same period.
- BTG acquired Julius Baer Brasil’s family office business ($11 billion AUM), JGP Wealth Management ($3.4 billion), Greytown Advisors ($1 billion), and M.Y. Safra ($391 million), building its multifamily office business to ~$22 billion AUM.
- Itaú Unibanco aims to mobilize R$1 trillion (~US$200–210 billion) in sustainable finance by 2030, with over R$120 billion already deployed by late 2024.
- In 2024, Itaú structured US$2.7 billion in ESG bond issuance across 30 operations, a 170% YoY increase.
- March 2025: Itaú BBA co-structured a US$280 million biodiversity and social bond with IFC and IDB Invest.
- Bradesco Global Private Bank: >90% of private bank transactions now executed digitally; NPS among relationship banking clients up 10 points; AI tools like BIA virtual assistant and Bridge platform embedded for advisory, reporting, document handling; AI-driven security and fraud-monitoring frameworks in place.