Scotiabank takes 51 per cent controlling interest in Peru's Banco Cencosud

A man leaves Scotiabank in Toronto on Thursday, April 9, 2015. (Nathan Denette/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

TORONTO -- Scotiabank continues to expand its footprint in Latin America, with a plan to acquire a 51 per cent controlling interest Peru's Banco Cencosud for approximately $130 million.

The agreement, which is subject to regulatory approval, will make Scotiabank the second-largest credit card issuer in the South American country.

The deal will see the two companies enter into a 15-year partnership to manage the credit card business and "provide additional products and services to customers," according to a Scotiabank statement.

The company says Cencosud is the second largest supermarket and fourth largest department store chain in Peru, and its banking branch has more than 315,000 clients.

Scotiabank first established a presence in Peru in 1997, and it now has more than 10,000 employees across 310 branches in the country.

The company operates in 11 countries across Latin America, with a particular focus on Mexico, Peru, Chile and Colombia.

In January, the lender announced a deal to buy Citibank's consumer and small and medium enterprise operations in Colombia for an undisclosed amount.

In December, Scotiabank said it had secured a deal to buy a 68 per cent stake in a Chilean banking operation, BBVA Chile, for $2.9 billion.