On Tuesday, May 15, 2023, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador led a meeting with businessman German Larrea and members of his Economic Advisory Council at the National Palace, after announcing that negotiations had progressed for Grupo Mexico to acquire Banamex from Citigroup.

Meanwhile, Lopez Obrador had assured that the negotiations were already in an advanced stage, with only the issue of tax payment for the transaction remaining to be reviewed, as he criticized during a morning press conference that this requirement was not fulfilled in the previous sale.

German Larrea Mota Velasco is the second richest man in Mexico, according to the list published by Forbes in 2023, in addition to being the president of Grupo Mexico. If the purchase were to take place, it was estimated that Grupo Mexico would own 80 percent of the unit in a $7.1 billion deal. However, it seems that not everything went well, as the mining magnate has withdrawn from the purchase of Citibanamex, according to information shared by Dario Celis.

It was through Twitter that the host of Tiempo de Negocios at Heraldo Media Group confirmed the facts.

"I am not going to pay $7 billion for something that can be taken away from me tomorrow," stated the businessman, who had previously faced difficulties with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador over the purchase of the financial institution, as the president imposed certain conditions.