PBR Petroleo Brasileiro ADR

SÃ O PAULO—Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual reached an agreement to sell its stake in two financial services companies to French insurer CNP Assurances Group, for a total amount of 700 million reais ($200 million).

BTG, which holds a 51% stake in insurance subsidiaries PAN Seguros and PAN Corretora, said that the final amount of the acquisition is "subject to certain adjustments in order to reflect the companies' performance" until the date of closing plus any dividends to be distributed to shareholders.

CNP has been operating in Brazil since 2001 through Caixa Seguradora, a subsidiary owned jointly with state-owned Caixa Econô mica Federal and CNP Assurances's local distribution partner, according to the French group's website.

Caixa Seguradora is Brazil's fifth-largest insurance company, according to its website, and its parent company Caixa Econô mica is BTG's partner at Banco Pan.

BTG Pactual, once a growing investment bank with global ambitions, has been selling assets to raise cash after the arrest of its founder and former CEO André Esteves on Nov. 25 as part of an investigation into corruption at state-run oil company Petró leo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras.

Mr. Esteves, who is no longer involved in the bank's management, was released from jail in December and is currently under house arrest. Brazilian prosecutors say Mr. Esteves plotted with a legislator to bribe a key witness in the investigation and spirit him out of Brazil. Prosecutors indicted Mr. Esteves in December, but the Supreme Court hasn't disclosed if the charges have been accepted because the case is under seal. Through his lawyer, Mr. Esteves has denied wrongdoing.

Earlier this month, BTG said that an internal investigation found "no basis to conclude" that allegations of misconduct and corruption against its former CEO, Mr. Esteves, were "credible, accurate or supported by reliable evidence."

Mr. Esteves's arrest prompted many clients to pull money from investment funds managed by the bank, which has been forced to sell assets and significantly shrink its operations as a consequence. The value of the bank's traded units has dropped by almost half since the day before Mr. Esteves's arrest.

Write to Rogerio Jelmayer at rogerio.jelmayer@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 22, 2016 08:25 ET (12:25 GMT)

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