[PEN-L:28602] Citibank seeks control of Argentine newspaper

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Friday July 26, 12:07 pm Eastern Time
Dow Jones Business News
Citigroup Seeks Control Of Argentine Newspaper - Report


BUENOS AIRES -(Dow Jones)- Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C - News) 's Argentina unit
wants a 58% stake in and management control of SA La Nacion in exchange for
the $100 million in overdue debt the banking company is owed by the
newspaper publisher, the Buenos Aires Economico newspaper reported Friday.

Citibank Argentina executives and officials at La Nacion were not
immediately available to comment on the BAE report.

In June, when similar reports circulated widely within Argentine financial
circles, a La Nacion executive told Dow Jones Newswires that his company and
Citigroup were in debt repayment talks but denied there was any discussion
about Citibank Argentina taking an equity stake in the newspaper.

At the time, the executive said La Nacion owed $120 million in dollar-
denominated debt to Citigroup and the BankBoston unit of FleetFinancial
Corp.( FBF).

A proposed law designed to shield politically influential Argentine media
companies from their foreign creditors, opposed by the International
Monetary Fund, is stalled in the Congress.

To relieve the burden of its considerable dollar-denominated debts, the
Perez Companc family said Monday it planned to sell 60% of its main oil
company, Perez Companc SA , to Petrobras of Brazil for $1.1 billion in cash
and debt.