Shareholders in Brazil’s Banco Inter approve Nasdaq listing

By Tatiana Bautzer and Gram Slattery

SAO PAULO/RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Banco Inter SA shareholders have approved the transfer of its listing from Brazilian stock exchange B3 to the U.S.-based Nasdaq, the Brazilian bank said in a securities filing on Thursday.

Banco Inter shareholders now will be able to cash out their stakes or receive Brazilian Depositary Receipts that may be converted into Class A shares traded on the Nasdaq. The deadline for choosing to convert or cash out is Dec. 2, Banco Inter Chief Financial Officer Helena Caldeira said.

In an interview with Reuters, Caldeira said the bank expects shareholders will demand to cash out less than 2 billion reais ($359.30 million) worth of Banco Inter units. If the amount is higher, the bank has the right to review the transaction and potentially lower the cash-out price.

Banco Inter will pay 45.84 reais for each unit that its shareholders decide to cash out, a 22% premium over the closing price on Thursday.

The bank decided to move its main listing venue to the United States to have “more access to global capital markets and potentially a larger and more diverse investor base,” it said in an earlier statement on Thursday.

The Nasdaq listing is expected to be effective on Dec. 28, Caldeira added.

($1 = 5.5664 reais)

(Reporting by Gram Slattery; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Paul Simao)