The Sao Paulo-based credit card company's shareholders - including Visa, Banco Bradesco, Banco do Brasil and Banco Santander - sold 559.81 million shares at a price of 15 reais each.

Book-building in the IPO closed out yesterday with shares set to begin trading on the Brazilian Stock Exchange on Monday.

According to a Reuters report, on Wednesday 19 brokerages were banned from participating in the IPO for allegedly releasing unapproved advertising material about the sale.

VisaNet was the first Brazilian IPO of the year and the country's biggest ever.

The shares were sold at the high end of the expected range, suggesting investor confidence in the potential for growth in Brazil's credit card market, which has grown at around 20% a year for the last 10 years.

Earlier this year Citigroup sold most of its 17% stake in Redecard, another Brazilian payments outfit which processes MasterCard and Diners Club transactions.