Pedro Luis Uriarte, chief executive at Spain's Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, has spearheaded a $6.5 billion investment drive into Latin America over the past six years. The invasion has been dubbed the "reconquest" by the Latin press. Now Uriarte's got his hands on Aztec gold. On Mar. 9, BBVA snapped up a 30% stake along with operating control of Grupo Financiero Bancomer, Mexico's No. 2 financial group, for $1.75 billion. The deal makes BBVA the No. 1 bank in Latin America with a 9.1% share of total deposits, ahead of Spanish arch rival Banco Santander Central Hispano.